Into the Depths of Darkness
by Hagato
Summary: A year after the events at Duel Academy, people have mostly forgotten them. But as Christopher Saigo enters Duel Academy, a spawn of last year's evil shows itself and threatens the world. Can Chris destroy the evil before it controls the world? please RxR
1. Chapter 1

The sun rose over the sleepy city. Sunlight glimmered off the city's buildings and shone down on the very few early commuters. Although this was a city, very few people were out and about. Everybody in this city slept in later. This, Dormir City, prided itself in being able to sleep in late and still get all of the important stuff done.

Christopher Saigo was one of those people. He lay in his bed, unwilling to get up. He rolled around in his bed, trying to find a comfortable position.

"It's got to be too early." he moaned to himself.

Suddenly, his door burst open and slammed against the wall. Christopher was about to jump out of his bed when a small body slammed into him. He fell back onto his bed while the small body started jumping on his bed. It was his 5-year-old brother, Asher.

"Wake up Chrisy! Wake up Chrisy!" he shouted. "It's 10:30! You're late for your Duel Academy Entrance Exam!"

"What!?" shouted Christopher. He jumped from his bed and started grabbing clothes to put on. "Why did my alarm wake me?" He looked over at his clock and almost fell over. It read 7:30. "Asher," he said, picking himself off the floor. "Do you know what a 10 is?"

"Yup!" replied Asher, enthusiastically.

"Count it for me on your fingers." Christopher said. Asher held up seven fingers. Christopher sighed. "Asher, that's seven." Christopher then held up ten fingers. "This is ten, Asher. And another thing, its Chris! C-H-R-I-S"

Asher's face fell. "Sorry Chris. I didn't mean to bug you."

Chris looked down at his little brother. He knew that Asher meant well, but sometimes he went overboard. "Are mom and dad up?"

"They had to go to work early, remember?" said Asher. "But Anthia is down stairs making breakfast. Which is why I'm up here actually, she wants to know what do you want for breakfast?"

"Tell her that I'll tell her what I want when I get down there." said Chris. "But right now, I'm going to take a shower." Asher ran from the room. Chris grabbed some clothes from his closet and went to the bath room and took his shower. Ten minutes later, Chris stepped out of the bathroom wearing a black T-shirt and blue jeans. Christopher was an average 15-year-old teenager. He was tall and thin. He had medium length black hair and dull blue eyes.

He went back to his room and attached his duel disk to his arm. He also grabbed his wallet and his reading glasses. He left his room and made his way down the stairs and almost tripped over his dog, Tyler. Stumbling into the kitchen, and caught himself and sat down at the table.

"Morning, Anthia." Chris said.

"Good morning to you too," she said, sliding a plate of bacon and eggs in front of him. "Why are you up so early?"

"Asher." Chris replied as he started eating the bacon and eggs. Chris noticed that Anthia was wearing a business suit. "What's with the suit?"

Anthia smiled. "I start my new teaching job today!"

Chris almost fell out of his chair! "What? When did you get a teaching job?" Anthia was not the type of person who you'd think of as a teacher. She was tall and thin, like Chris, but she was very outgoing and energetic. Also, she dyed her hair once every few months. This time around, it was bright green and tied in a pony tail.

"Yesterday!" she responded. "I've got to go now. They wanted me there early so I could help them set up something." She rushed out of the kitchen, grabbed a brief case, and rushed out the door. Chris continued to eat his breakfast when Asher stumbled into the kitchen carrying three large binders.

"Why have you got my spare cards?" asked Chris.

"You promised to build me a deck, remember?" replied Asher, dropping the binders on the floor.

"Oh yeah, that's right. I did." said Chris. "Let me finish my breakfast first." Chris ate his breakfast quickly. He put his dish in the sink and picked his binders up his binders. "Lets do this in the living room." After an hour and a half, Chris had constructed a Dinosaur deck that was at least half way decent.

"Thanks bro!" shouted Asher with glee. He slapped on a small duel disk and ran out the door.

"Where are you going?" shouted Chris.

"To the park!" Asher shouted over his shoulder.

"But wait, you can't go by yourself!" Chris shouted, running after Asher.

"But I'm not by myself!" Asher shouted. Chris ran out the door and saw that three or four other kids were with him. The oldest of the group, a 14-year-old named Donny, raised his hand in greeting.

"Hi Chris!" he shouted. "I've drafted into taking these munchkins to the park!" As the group went to the park, Chris could hear the little kids complaining to Donny about him calling them munchkins. Chris sighed and looked at his watch. It was 9:30.

"Oh well," he said to himself. "I might as well go none." He put on his duel disk, grabbed his reading glasses and left for the exam building. The entrance examinations for Duel Academy would start at 10:00 and last for two hours. The exam building was a good was away so it would take him awhile to get there. By now, most people were out an about and the city was brought to life with all of the hustle and bustle.

It took Chris a full hour to get there. Thankfully, the lines were not long and Chris was soon at the table on the outside of the building. There, he received papers that he needed to fill out about his name, age, date of birth, and health information. After giving the paper to an official, he was given a paper test and escorted to a small room with several small desks.

Chris thought that most of the test was easy. Basically they were questions on well known monsters and duelists. Then there was a small section of the test that was about personality. Above these questions, there was a small heading that said 'this part of the test will not be graded. We just want to know a bit more about you.'

This only had three questions. The first one was 'Why do you want to come to Duel Academy?' Chris's response was 'Because I want too!' The second question was 'Do you intend to use the same deck throughout the year?' Chris's response was 'Yes'. The last question was 'What kind of duelist are you? Bad, Good, Excellent?' Chris's response was 'Good'. After Chris finished the test, he handed it to the official in the room. The test was then graded. He got an almost perfect score, only missing two questions.

He was then lead to a large arena that had six small dueling fields with the stands circling around it. "Sit in the stands until you name is called for your duel." said the official and the official walked off. So Chris sat in the stands watching the duels. Then there was a large explosion and an Exodia appeared on one of the fields.

Chris looked over into that direction. "Wow!" some shouted close to his ear. Chris jumped, and saw that a person was set one or two seats away was leaning over in the direction of the Exodia. The boy was about as tall as Chris. He had short, sandy brown hair, and seemed fit.

"Hey! Stop yelling!" Chris shouted at the boy.

The boy looked up in surprise. "Sorry about that." He stuck his hand out for shaking. "The name is Caden Hama. Nice to meet you."

Chris shook his hand. "I'm Christopher Saigo, but call me Chris."

Suddenly, a voice came over the loud speakers in the room. "Will Mr. Caden Hama report to Duel Field #2?"

Caden jumped from his seat. "I've got to go." Caden ran off. Soon the voice came over the loud speakers again. "Will Mr. Christopher Saigo report to Duel Field #6?" Chris got up and went to the Duel Field. It was small with small hologram projectors around it. When Chris got to the field, a man was standing on the opposite end of the field. He was tall, and muscular. He was wearing a blue trench coat, black pants, and large sunglasses.

"Good afternoon," the man said. "I am Instructor Daiki Genji. If you are able to beat me, you get to enter Duel Academy. So lets cut to the chase." Daiki activated his duel disk and drew five cards. Chris activated his duel disk and drew five cards. "I will let you go first, junior."

Chris drew a card. "Hold on a second," he said pulling out his reading glasses. He pointed to them. "I need these to read the cards. Anyway, I summon A Man with Wdjat in attack mode (1600/1600). Next I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Daiki drew a card. "I activate the trap card Thunder of Ruler!" Chris shouted. "This card makes it so you don't have a battle phase this turn."

Daiki sighed. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode (1900/1200). I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the effect of my A Man with Wdjat! During the standby phase I get to look at one of your set cards!" Daiki's facedown card flipped up. It was a Negate Attack. "Okay, I activate the facedown trap card Sword of Spellcasters! Since I have a spellcaster on the field, I can destroy one spell or trap card on the field! So your Negate Attack gets destroyed." A larger sword fell out of Chris's trap card and destroyed Daiki's Negate Attack. "Now I equip my A Man with Wdjat with Black Pendant! This will increase his attack points by 500." A Man with Wdjat's attack points rose to 2100. "A Man with Wdjat will now destroy your Vorse Raider!" Vorse Raider was destroyed and Daiki's life points dropped from 4000-3800. "I end my turn."

Daiki drew a card. "I activate the spell card Lightning Vortex! This will destroy all of your faceup monsters if I discard one card." Daiki discarded a card and bolts of lightning rained down on A Man with Wdjat. Black Pendant shattered and the shards flew at Daiki. His life points dropped from 3800-3300.

"I suppose I should mention that when Black Pendant is destroyed, you lose 500 life points." Chris said.

Daiki shrugged. "I know that. Moving on, I summon Giant Rat in attack mode (1400/1450). Now my Giant Rat will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate the trap card Spellcaster Apprenticeship!" shouted Chris. "This allows me to special summon one level 3 or lower spellcaster monster from my deck. So I special summon Apprentice Magician in defense mode (400/800)." Daiki's Giant Rat destroyed Apprentice Magician. "Now I activate the effect of my Apprentice Magician! When it is destroyed by battle, I get to special summon one level 2 or lower spellcaster monster from my deck in facedown defense mode." Chris took a monster from his deck and placed it facedown on the field.

"I place one card facedown. I end my turn." muttered Daiki.

Chris drew a card. "I flip up my Magician of Faith (300/400). This allows me to take one spell card from my graveyard to my hand. Basically, I get Black Pendant back." Chris took Black Pendant from his graveyard and added it to his hand. "Next I activate the spell card Magical Dimension! It requires me to sacrifice one spellcaster monster so I can special summon a spellcaster monster from my hand. So I sacrifice my Magician of Faith to special summon my **Dark Magician** in attack mode (2500/2000). Due to the secondary effect of my Magical Dimension, your Giant Rat is destroyed. Next I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards. "Now I activate the first card I drew, which is the spell card Monster Reborn to bring back my A Man with Wdjat. Next I activate the second card I drew, Magical Blast! This will inflect 200 points of life point damage to you for each spellcaster monsters on my side of the field!" A ball of magical energy burst from Chris's card and slammed into Daiki. His life points dropped from 3300-2900. "Now my Dark Magician will attack your life points directly!" Dark Magician lifted its staff and shot a ball of dark energy at Daiki, reducing his life points to 0.

"Congratulations junior," said Daiki, placing his card back in his deck. "Welcome to Duel Academy!"

* * *

Up in the stands, a teenage girl had been watching the duels taking place on the six duel fields with mild interest. She was an average 15-year-old teenage girl. She was tall and slender. Her brown hair hung down to her shoulders, and her icy blue eyes showed little to no emotion. She was wearing a dull pink shirt, blue jeans, and black shoes. A gothic girl was sitting next to her. She had short black hair. She was wearing a black shirt, black skirt, black stockings, and black shoes.

The first girl sighed. "So much world to conquer, so little time."

"With the power you posses, it so be easy." said the gothic girl. She was holding a small dagger in her hands. "It makes me wonder why you even need servants." The gothic girl flipped the dagger in her hands so that the blade faced her. She plunged the blade to her, but her arm froze right before the tip of the blade touched her shirt. "Why don't you just let me die?"

The first girl laughed. "For three reasons. The first being that you're a good duelist and that is a valuable skill I need. Secondly, your skills with a knife could also be valuable. Lastly, I like to watch you suffer."

The gothic girl glared at the girl. "I hate you." The first girl laughed again. Suddenly, a tall muscular boy walked up to them. He bowed his head.

"Madam Adelie." he said.

"You may speak." replied Adelie.

The boy raised his head. "I don't see why we have to stay here any longer. Most of these idiots are barley up to scratch to even get in to Duel Academy!"

"We need to scope out the compotation." replied Adelie. "Any more questions, Edon?" she asked sarcastically.

The boy, Edon, missed the sarcasm and asked, "If you're supposed to be an ultimate being of darkness, why do you wearing pink?"

Adelie glared at Edon. "Is there a problem with the way I dress?" she asked, her voice dripped venom.

Edon, realizing his mistake, took a step back and threw up his hands. "No, no," he said quickly. "There is no problem." Adelie looked away from Edon and looked back to the Duel Fields. Edon sighed with relief. "I wonder where that idiot Faron is."

Suddenly, there was a loud pop; a gangly boy about a head shorter then Edon appeared beside him. Edon yelped and jumped sideways, almost falling into the row in front of him. "You called?" asked the boy.

"Faron!" shouted Edon. "I told you to stop doing that!"

Faron laughed and waged his finger at Edon. "I'd like to see you try and stop me." Edon charge towards Faron and tried to hit him with an uppercut. Faron laughed and leaned back, and the uppercut flew right past his chin. Faron then ducked low and made several quick jabs at Edon, but they had about as much effect as Edon's uppercut.

Adelie sighed as she watched Edon and Faron fought. She looked over to the gothic girl. "Myrine, please stop them."

Myrine sighed. "As if I had a choice." She drew a second dagger and moved towards Faron and Edon. In a flash, both daggers were at both of their throats. When her blades touched their skin, they stopped in an instantly. She glared at both of them. "Behave yourselves." They nodded and Myrine withdrew her daggers. Edon glared at Faron, and opened his mouth as if he was about to say something. But he was cut off by the intercom.

"Attention all applicants," said a voice. "Please report to the main desk for your result papers." Adelie got up and started walking away. "Lets go." she said. Myrine, Edon, and Faron followed her."

* * *

After about an hour or so waiting in line, Chris finally got his results papers and left the build. He read them as he walked him. '**Congratulations! You have been accepted to Duel Academy!**' was at the top of his paper in big bold letters. Then below that, there was a small box that read 'You have been accepted to the dorm'. Next to that was a box that had Ra Yellow written in it. Chris wasn't surprised by that. He had aced his entrance exam, but the only way you could start off as an Obelisk Blue was to have gone to this Prep school that Chris had found was totally unnecessary, and a total waste of time.

Chris looked down at the paper. Under the dorm box was his score on his written exam, which he already knew. Below that were several smaller boxes. Above these boxes was '**Comments on Duel Exam**' in big bold letters. Chris looked at the boxes. Only one had anything written in it.

Chris read what it said. 'I believe that your deck is a complete rip-off of Yugi Mutou's deck. This is childish and if you want to be considered a true duelist then you should change your deck immediately.' Chris laughed. He couldn't believe that this idiot actually thought that his deck was a Yugi Mutou rip-off. Yes, he did use some cards that Yugi does but his was completely spellcaster except for one or two cards. Chris folded the papers in his pocket and enjoyed the rest of the day.

* * *

**Sword of the Spellcasters **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a spellcaster holding a large sword.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when you control one 'Spellcaster' type monster. Destroy one spell or trap card on the field.

**Spellcaster Apprenticeship**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a old magician showing wand movements to a younger magician.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when you control no monsters. Special summon one level 3 or lower 'spellcaster' monster in face up defense position.

* * *

Finally! I got around to starting this story!


	2. Sailing Day

Two days later, Chris found himself being driven down to the city's docks by his parents. To get to Duel Academy, Chris had to endure a day and a half long ferry trip. Chris never did late boat trips, and he always got seasick. Chris was expecting to spend most of the trip in his room throwing up into the toilet.

"I hope you have a good time at Duel Academy." said Chris's mother as they pulled into a parking lot. There was a small sign in the parking lot that said 'Ferry to Duel Academy that way'. Below those words was an arrow pointing to a large ship. Chris thought that the sign should say 'Cruse' instead off 'Ferry'.

"Now behave yourself," his father said sternly as Chris got out of the car. He grabbed a suit case out of the back of the car. "I don't to hear any bad things about you from the school."

"Don't worry. You won't." said Chris as he walked towards the boat. He waved at his parents. "Bye mom, bye dad!" His parents smiled, waved back, and drove away. Chris walked towards the dock and joined the line of people waiting to board the boat. Next to the gangplank, two men were check names off a list and giving people the number of their rooms. They checked Chris's name off their list, gave him a little card, and got on the boat.

Chris wondered into the boats interior. He took a look at his card. It said his room was on B deck, and it was cabin number 15. Chris wondered around the ship until he found several small racks that hand maps of the ship in them. Using the map, he was able to find his room. He dropped his suit case on a car in the room and went back out on deck.

The deck was crowed. Most of the people were in normal clothes, but a lot of people were students wearing the school uniform. They were lined up on the side rail waving goodbye to the people below. The whistle of the ship blew, and the ship pulled out of the harbor with a shutter. Chris gulped, hoping he wouldn't throw up. But the sea was calm, so he wasn't getting seasick. He went back inside and went to the cafeteria and got a bit to eat.

As Chris was eating, a boy placed his tray at the table he was sitting at. Chris looked up and saw that the boy was Caden. "Hello Caden."

"Howdy Chris!" he replied. "Do you mind if me and my friend sit with you?"

Chris nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

Caden smiled. He turned around and waved at someone. "Hey Dustin! Over here, I found us some seats!" Chris looked in the direction that Caden was waving in. A tall, slightly muscular boy was walking towards them holding a tray of food. People, especially those people who were Obelisk Blue, were giving him a wide berth. The boy was wearing oil stained mechanic's overalls, a simple blue shirt, and a red and white stripped bandana wrapped around his head. He sat down at the table and held out his hand for shaking.

"Hi, you must be Chris. I'm Dustin Seo." he said in a loud voice as he shook Chris's hand.

"Nice to meet you." Chris replied. Dustin sat down and started eating. "If you don't mind my asking, why are you wearing those overalls?"

Dustin stopped eat. "I'm a mechanic, and I like to wear them." He looked down at the oil stains. "But I probably should wash these or get a new pair, though." They ate their food in silence for a few minutes.

"Hey Chris," Caden said suddenly. "How about a duel once we're finished eating?" Chris, his mouth full of food, simply nodded. Once they were finished eating, they put away their trays and went to a section of the stern that was made into three small dueling fields. They had to wait for several minutes until one was free. As soon as one was free, Caden and Chris charged onto the field before anyone else could take it.

"Alright," said Chris as he put on his reading glasses. Chris and Caden activated their duel disks and drew their hands. "I'll start this duel." said Chris as he drew a card. "I summon Magician of Pain in attack mode (1400/1900)!" A man wearing blood red robes and holding a large metal staff that ended in a large spike that had to larger blades protruding from the top sides of the staff appeared on the field. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I set one monster in defense mode, and then place two cards facedown. I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Star Witch in attack mode (1700/1300)." A young girl wearing black robes and a black hat with a pattern of big white stars on them appeared on the field. "Now my Star Witch will attack your facedown monster!" Star Witch pulled out a wand and white bolts of energy shot out of it. They hit the facedown monster, and the monster flipped up. A large crane shot up out of the card. It had to large eyes on its driver's compartment.

"What you have attacked is my Craneroid which has 1900 defense points (0/1900)!" shouted Caden.

Chris slapped his forehead. "Crap," he muttered as his life points dropped from 4000-3800. "I end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Wreckeroid in attack mode (1800/1200)!" A much smaller crane on caterpillar tracks appeared on the field. At the end of its arm hung a wrecking ball with a set of large eyes on it. "Now my Wreckeroid will destroy your Star Witch!" Wreckeroid swung around on its base and the wrecking ball shot out and slammed into Star Witch, destroying her.

"The effect of my Star Witch activates!" shouted Chris. "When she is destroyed I get to add two spell cards from my deck to my hand!" Chris took two cards from his deck.

Caden shrugged. "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I equip my Magician of Pain with Black Pendant to increase his attack strength!" Magician of Pain's attack points rose to 1900. "Now my Magician of Pain will destroy your Wreckeroid!" Magician of Pain charged forward and slashed Wreckeroid in half. Caden's life points dropped from 4000-3900. "Now the effect of my Magician of Pain activates! When you take damage, his effect causes you to lose the same amount of life points you just did!" Caden's life points dropped to 3800. "I end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I activate the spell card Mystical Space Typhoon! This card will destroy your Black Pendant!" A strong storm blew out of Caden's card and blew away Black Pendant.

"Now the effect of my Black Pendant activates!" shouted Chris. "When it is destroyed, you lose 500 life points. Then Magician of Pain will inflect another 500 points to you!" Caden's life points dropped from 3800-2800.

Caden sighed. "Aw man. I summon Drillroid in attack mode (1600/1600). Drillroid will now destroy your Magician of Pain." Drillroid rolled forward and destroyed Magician of Pain. Chris's life points dropped from 3800-3600. "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate my facedown trap Call of the Haunted! This allows me to special summon my Star Witch from my graveyard. Next I activate the spell card Life and Death Tribute! This allows to remove one monster from my field, and one monster in my graveyard to tribute summon one level 7 or level 8 monster from my deck. So I remove Star Witch and Magician of Pain to summon Mystical Paladin in attack mode (2000/2000)." A large man in heavy armor, holding a large sword and shield appeared on the field. "Now my Mystical Paladin will destroy your Drillroid!" Mystical Paladin charged forward and destroyed Drillroid.

"I activate the trap card Roid Detour!" shouted Caden. "When I 'roid' monster is destroyed, I can send one of my spell or trap cards to negate the damage!" Caden's facedown card was destroyed. "That card was Wonder Garage! It allows me to special summon a machine monster from my hand. So now I special summon my Missileroid in attack mode (500/500)." A small missile with eyes on the warhead and two small arms on the sides appeared on the field. "Then the effect of my Missileroid activates. When it is special summoned, I get to special summon two more!" Two more Missileroids appeared on the field.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." finished Chris.

Caden drew a card. "I activate the spell card Missileroid Launcher!" A large missile launcher with two big eyes on the front of it appeared next to Caden. The three Missileroids loaded themselves into the missile launcher. "Now I activate the effect of Missileroid Launcher! By sacrificing a Missileroid, I can inflect 500 points of damage to you!" The Missileroids fire out of the launcher and slammed into Chris. His life points dropped from 3600-2100. "Next I activate the spell card Mechanics of Attack and Defense. As long as this card is one the field, all machine type monsters can change battle positions once at any time during either of our turns. Next I equip my Craneroid with a spell card now as Heart of Clear Water! This will make it so it can't be destroyed as a result of battle. Next I activate the effect of my Craneroid to activate its effect!"

As Craneroid switched to attack mode, a small hole appeared next to it. It lowered its chain and hook into the hole and pulled out a Missileroid. "When Craneroid is switched to attack mode, I can special summon one 'roid' monster from the graveyard. In this case, Missileroid. Now I sacrifice Missileroid to inflect 500 points of damage to you!" Missileroid loaded itself into Missileroid Launcher, and was fired at Chris. His life points dropped from 2100-1600. "Now I activate the effect of Mechanics of Attack and Defense to switch Craneroid to defense mode. I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "The effect of Mystical Paladin activates. During every one of my standby phases, it gains 200 attack points." Mystical Paladin's attack points rose to 2200. "I activate the spell card Mystical Space Typhoon! This will destroy your Missileroid Launcher!"

"I activate the effect of a monster in my hand called Carrierroid!" shouted Caden. "When you activate the card that destroys a spell or trap card, I can discard this card from my hand to negate your card." Mystical Space Typhoon was blocked and negated.

"Crap!" shouted Chris as he looked down at his hand. "I end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I switch my Craneroid to attack mode to activate his effect!" Craneroid lifted a Missileroid out the graveyard. "Then I sacrifice it to inflect 500 points of damage to you!" Missileroid was fired at Chris and his life points dropped to 1100. "Next, I switch Craneroid to defense mode. I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. Mystical Paladin's attack points rose to 2400. "I summon Sage of Spell Absorption in attack mode (1500/1600)." An old man wearing brown robes and holding a large staff with a green jewel on the end of it appeared on the field. "Once per turn, he can destroy a spell card and give me 300 life points!"

"I activate the trap card Divine Wrath!" shouted Caden. "I discard one card from my hand to negate your monster's effect and destroy that monster." Caden discarded a card and a bolt of lightning struck Sage of Spell Absorption, destroying it."

"I end my turn." said Chris sadly.

Caden drew a card. "I switch Craneroid to attack mode to bring back a Missileroid. Then I sacrifice that Missileroid to inflect 500 points of damage." Chris's life points dropped from 1100-600. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. His Mystical Paladin's attack points rose to 2600. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I activate the trap card Trap Sweeper! I chose one facedown card. If it is a trap, it is destroyed." Chris's card flipped faceup. It was a Dust Tornado and was destroyed. "Now I switch Craneroid to attack mode to bring back Missileroid. Then I sacrifice my Missileroid to inflect 500 points of damage." Chris's life points dropped from 600-100. "I switch Craneroid to defense mode and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. The Mystical Paladin's attack points rose to 2800. "I activate the spell card Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards. "I activate the spell card Graveyard Casting! This allows to take a spell card from my graveyard and activate it. So I chose to activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your facedown!" Mystical Space Typhoon destroyed Caden's facedown. "Now the spell card is removed from play. Next I activate the spell card Stop Defense to switch your Craneroid to attack mode!" Craneroid switched to attack mode and Caden brought back Missileroid. "Now my Mystical Paladin will attack your Craneroid!"

"But why?" asked Caden. "My monster won't be…" Then realization hit Caden like a ton of bricks. "CRAP! Even though my monster won't be destroyed, I still lose all of my life points!"

"That's right, since my Mystical Paladin has 2800 attack points and you only have 2800 life points." said Chris as Mystical Paladin slashed Craneroid and Caden's life points dropped to 0.

"Nice duel, Chris!" said Caden as he shook hands with Chris.

"You too." said Chris. "You almost had me there." Chris soon realized that a bout of seasickness was coming up. "You'll have to excuse me," he said to Caden and Dustin, who had been watching them. "I need to go throw up."

"See you tomorrow, then!" they shouted as he ran off towards the bathroom. After a few minutes of throwing up, he felt better. Unable to find Caden or Dustin, he walked around the ship, watching a few duels and looking out at the sea. He managed to eat a small supper in the late evening. He tried to go to his room, but got lost again. After an hour or so he found the right deck and was looking from the right room.

He rounded a corner and _**WHAM**_. He ran headlong it someone coming in the opposite direction. They both fell over in a tangled heap. Chris realized two things. One, that the person he had run into was a girl. She was slightly shorter than him, and had shoulder length autumn colored hair. The second thing he noticed that his hand was touching something it shouldn't be touching. He withdrew his hand quickly and helped the girl up.

"I sorry, sorry, sorry!" he said quickly. He was expecting a slap. But the girl, blushing about as much as he was, picked up her things saying "It's alright, it's alright. It was an accident." She said it nearly as fast as Chris's apologies. She quickly walked away. Chris walked away in the opposite direction. He eventually found his room. He got into the white shirt and black sweat pants he wore for sleeping and went to bed.

* * *

**Magician of Pain**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/1900)

**Effect: **When damage is inflected to your opponent, inflect the same amount damage to your opponent as long as this card is faceup on the field.

**Star Witch**

**Type: **monster/light/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1300)

**Effect: **When this card is sent to the graveyard, add two spell cards from your deck to your hand.

**Sage of Spell Absorption **

**Type: **monster/light/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/1600)

**Effect: **Once per turn, destroy one spell card on the field. Then increase your life points by 300.

**Mystical Paladin **

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(2000/2000)

**Effect: **This card gains two attack points every standby phase. When this card is destroyed, special summon one 'Spellcaster type monster from your deck regardless of summoning conditions.

**Life and Death Tribute**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a split picture with a lowing grave on one side, and a glowing warrior on the other side.

**Effect: **Remove one monster on the field, and one monster in the graveyard from play. Normal summon one monster with 7 or 8 stars. You can't special summon this turn.

**Graveyard Casting**

**Type: **spell

**Image: **a skeleton wearing a wizard's robe waving a wand.

**Effect: **Take one spell card from your graveyard and activate it. Once done, remove that spell card from play.

**Craneroid**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(0/1900)

**Effect: **When this card is switched to attack position, special summon one monster with "roid" from your graveyard.

**Wreckeroid**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1800/1200)

**Effect: **When this card is special summoned, destroy one monster on the field.

**Missileroid**

**Type: **monster/wind/machine-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(500/500)

**Effect: **When this card is special summoned, special summon two 'Missileroids' from your hand or deck.

**Missileroid Launcher **

**Type: **continuous spell

**Image: **a large missile launcher with two eyes on the front of it firing Missileroids.

**Effect: **Tribute one faceup Missileroid(s). Inflect 500 points of life point damage to your opponent from each Missileroid tributed. When this card is destroyed, draw a card for each Missileroid tributed.

**Mechanics of Attack and Defense**

**Type: **continuous spell

**Image: **a diagram of a small robot changing battle phases.

**Effect: **Either you or your opponent may change the battle phase of a 'machine' type monster once per turn.

**Roid Detour **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a car with eyes and arms on a highway. It is turning off the highway because there is an accident up the highway.

**Effect: **When you take battle damage, destroy one of your set spell or trap cards to negate the battle damage.

**Trap Sweeper**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a small robot going over facedown cards with a metal detector.

**Effect: **Look at one of your opponent's set cards. If it is a trap, destroy it. If not, return it to its original position.


	3. Arrival at the Academy

It was very early in the morning. The sun was just beyond the horizon, making a small red glowing in the distance. The decks of the ship were virtually lifeless except for three solitary figures on the bow. As the sun rose into the sky, sunlight revealed the figures to be Adelie, Edon, and Myrine.

"Where is Faron?" growled Adelie. "He's late."

Edon cracked his knuckled. "When I get my hands on him I'll kill him!"

"You will do no such thing!" snapped Adelie. "Only I can saw who must die and who must not. However, you can beat him to a bloody pulp." Edon sneered at the thought. Suddenly there was a loud pop and Faron appeared next to Edon. Edon, recovering from the shock of Faron's sudden appearance, brought his fist down on Faron's head causing him to slam into the deck.

Faron got up. "Hey, what was that for?" he shouted in indignation.

"You were late." said Adelie. "Care to tell us why?"

Faron looked down at the deck. "I forgot to set my clock."

"Idiot." muttered Myrine as she sliced up a card with one of her daggers.

"What are you doing Myrine?" Adelie asked with some interest.

"I got this card off of some idiot I beat." Myrine said continually cutting the card up.

"In other words, you stole it." said Faron.

"No, I persuaded him to hand it over." replied Myrine as the last slices of the card fell to the deck.

"Well, now that we are all here, we can begin." said Adelie. "You're wondering why we must go to Duel Academy, correct?" Faron and Edon nodded. Myrine didn't do anything. "We must use it as a spring board. While I won't tell my entire plan, but I will give one little bit of information. Something very special is about to happen this year, and I'm going to take full advantage of it." Adelie walked away, laughing lightly.

Edon stared after her. "Wait! Is that all you're going to say?" he asked.

"Yup." Adelie replied. She walked into the ship's superstructure and disappeared. Edon opened his mouth to say something but Myrine cut him off.

"Shut up Edon." Myrine said as she walked away. Edon stared at Myrine as she walked away. He then punched Faron in the head again.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR!" shouted Faron as he picked himself up again.

"Because I wanted too." said Edon as he himself walked away. Faron, nursing two large bumps on his head, muttered to himself for a moment and disappeared with a quit little pop.

* * *

Chris had a rough night. The movement of the ship had constantly woke him up and kept him wake. When he finally did go to sleep, he only slept for about four hours before he woke up again. He tied going to sleep again, but he constantly failed at it. When he checked the clock on the bedside table, it read 7:56. He groaned and decided to go have breakfast. So after a quick shower and change of clothes, he went up to the ship's cafeteria. He grabbed a plate of bacon and eggs and started eating.

Suddenly, Caden and Dustin slammed their plates down across from him. Both had cheery faces. "Good morning, Chris!" they said in unison.

"What's good about it?" Chris muttered darkly.

"Not much of a morning person are you?" asked Caden as he started eat his bacon and egg sandwich.

"I going to go out on a limb here and guess that you guys aren't from Dormir City?" asked Chris. Caden and Dustin shook their heads. "In Dormir City, everybody sleeps in late and still gets all of the important stuff done. So no, I'm not a morning person." Dustin laughed and Caden chuckled, spitting some bits of chewed food onto the table.

"Sorry about that." he said as he swept them off the table with a napkin. They ate their breakfasts in silence. They then put away their plates and made their way out to the deck.

"I'm going to go see if there is anything to do out on deck." said Chris and he walked out the door.

"Look out!" shouted Caden. He grabbed Chris and pushed him aside from the door way. Chris was about to yell at Caden, but he saw a fork sail through the air where his head had been and fall into the sea.

"What the..!?" Chris shouted. He poked his head through the doorway and saw three Obelisk Blue girls and the girl he had run into walking towards him. "What the heck is your problem?!" he shouted at them.

"You pervert!" shouted the leader and she made to slap Chris. He stepped back out of range and threw his hands up defensively.

"If you're talking about what happened last night, it was an accident!" Chris shouted.

"Can somebody clue us in?" asked Caden as he and Dustin stepped between Chris and the girls. Chris explained about running to the girl and accidentally having his hand somewhere it shouldn't be. "So it was an accident, right?"

"YES! IT WAS!" Chris shouted.

The oldest girl folded her arms. "How about this. You duel our sister. If you win, your exonerated. If you lose, you have to admit you're a pervert."

Chris nodded. "Alright, I accept that challenge."

"Good," said the oldest girl. "Prepare to get your butt kicked." The girls, Chris, Caden and Dustin went to the dueling fields. One was free so Chris and the youngest girl took up positions on the dueling field.

"Look," said the girl as they shuffled their decks. The girls were far enough away to not be able to hear what she was saying. "I'm sorry about my sister's behavior. They are a bit overprotective."

"A bit overprotective? They almost killed me!" said Chris. "That was an accident by the way. An accident!"

The girl blushed slightly and looked down. "Yes, I know it was an accident." They placed their decks and their duel disks and drew their hands.

"Before we start," asked Chris. "Can I get your name?"

The girl gave him a pleasant smile. "My name is Rubye Dazai."

"My name is Christopher Saigo." said Chris as he put on his reading glasses. "You can go first." he added.

Rubye drew her sixth card. "Why thank you. I'll start this duel by playing the field spell card A Legendary Ocean!" A giant wave of water cascaded over the field, causing people who weren't aware of what was going on to scream and duck for cover. Then an underwater city appeared behind Rubye.

"Wow, that's cool." said Caden as he moved his hand in and out of the holographic water.

"This field spell will downgrade all water monsters by one level and give them 200 extra attack and defense points. It also is treated as 'Umi' too." said Rubye. "Next I set one monster in facedown defense mode. I set on card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Skilled Dark Magician in attack mode (1900/1700). Now Skilled Dark Magician, attack her facedown monster!" Skilled Dark Magician lifted his staff and shot a ball of magical energy at the facedown. The monster flipped up. It was a large crab whose shell was completely made of steel. Skilled Dark Magician's attack bounced off harmlessly.

"What you have attacked is my Metal Shell Crab (0-200/2000-2200)." said Rubye. Chris's life points dropped from 4000-3700.

"I place two cards facedown and end my turn." said Chris.

Rubye drew a card. "I activate the spell card Shellfish Clamp!" Several clams flew out of Rubye's card and clamped onto Skilled Dark Magician. "My spell card will decrease your monster's attack points by 400 (1900-1500).

"Since you activated a trap," said Chris. "My monster gets a spell counter." One of the jewels on Skilled Dark Magician light up.

"Now I summon Mermaid Knight in attack mode (1500-1700/700-900)." continued Rubye. "Now my Mermaid Knight will attack your Skilled Dark Magician!"

"I activate Negate Attack!" shouted Chris. "This will stop your battle phase!"

"I end my turn." said Rubye.

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Swords of Revealing Light!" Several swords appeared on Rubye's field. Her monsters where trapped within them. "Next I place one card facedown. I end my turn."

Rubye drew a card. "I sacrifice my Mermaid Knight to summon Mermaid Shark Tamer in attack mode (2300-2500/1700-1900)." A mermaid holding a large chain and collar, wearing a plate of armor made of starfish appeared on the field. "Next I activate my trap card Call of the Sirens! This card forces one of your monsters to attack one of my monsters!" Skilled Dark Magician stepped forward and attacked Mermaid Shark Tamer. She easily defected Skilled Dark Magician's effect and brought down its large chain and collar on Skilled Dark Magician's head, destroying it. Chris's life points dropped from 3700-3100. "Now the effect of my Mermaid Shark Tamer activates! When she destroys a monster, I get to add one fish type monster from my deck and special summon it in defense mode! So I special summon Guardian Shark in defense mode (1800-2000/1300-1500)." A medium sized shark wearing golden armor appeared on the field. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Lightning Vortex!" shouted Chris. "I discard one card from my hand to destroy all of your faceup monsters!" Lightning rained down on Rubye's monsters. All except Mermaid Shark Tamer where destroyed. "Hey, why wasn't Mermaid Shark Tamer destroyed?"

"When Guardian Shark is on the field, I can send it to the graveyard to keep any monsters with 'Mermaid' in their name from being destroyed." said Rubye.

"Well the effect of the card I discarded activates! When it is discard from my hand, I get to special summon my Magician of Life in attack mode (2000/0) from my graveyard." A man wearing long white robes hold a large white scepter appeared on the field. "Next I activate the spell card Graceful Charity! This allows me to draw three cards and then discard two." Chris drew three cards and discarded two. "Then I activate the effect of one of the cards I just discarded, Magician of Death (0/2000)!" A skeleton wearing long black robes and holding a large black scepter with a skull at the end of it appeared on the field behind Mermaid Shark Tamer. "When this card is discarded from my hand, one of your monsters is destroyed." Magician of Death stabbed Mermaid Shark Tamer and they both shattered. "Now my Magician of Life will now attack your life points directly!"

"I activate the trap Tornado Wall!" shouted Rubye. "This will decrease the damage I take due to attacking monsters to 0!" Tornados appeared around Rubye and Magician of Life's attack bounced off.

"I end my turn." said Chris.

Rubye drew a card. "I summon Cure Mermaid in attack mode (1500-1700/800-1000). Next I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magician of Pain in attack mode (1400/1900). Next I activate the spell Magical Blast! This will inflect 200 points of damage to you for every spellcaster I have on the field." Rubye was hit by a ball of magical energy and her life points dropped from 4000-3600. "Now the effect of my Magician of Pain activates! You lose the same amount of life points again!" Rubye's life points dropped from 3600-3200. "Next I activate the spell card Combo Casting! I can only activate this card if I have two spellcasters on the field and it will then destroy one card. I chose to destroy your Cure Mermaid!" Magician of Life and Magician of Pain pointed their staffs at Cure Mermaid and fired balls of magical energy at Cure Mermaid. The balls of energy became one and destroyed Cure Mermaid. "I end my turn."

Rubye drew a card. "I summon Alys the Ocean Princess in attack mode (1200-1400/600-800)." A young, beautiful mermaid wearing a small crown appeared on the field. "Then I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "Magician of Life will now destroy your Alys the Ocean Princess!"

"I activate the trap card Negate Attack!" shouted Rubye. "This stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

"I place one card facedown end my turn." said Chris.

Rubye drew a card. "I activate the trap card Mermaid Magic! This allows me to take one spell card from my deck as long as I have a monster with 'mermaid' in its name is on the field." Rubye took a card from her deck and added it to her hand. "Now I activate that spell, known as Coronation of the Ocean Queen! This allows me to sacrifice my Alys the Ocean Princess to special summon my Alys the Ocean Queen in attack mode (3200-3400/2500-2700)!" The young Alys disappeared and was replace by an older version wearing a large gold crown, golden armor and holding a large golden Triton. "I now activate the effect of my Alys the Ocean Queen. It allows me to special summon up to three mermaid monsters from my graveyard. So I special summon Mermaid Shark Tamer (2300-2500/1700-1900) and Cure Mermaid (1500-1700/800-1000). Now my Alys the Ocean Queen will destroy your Magician of Pain!" Alys the Ocean Queen swam forward and squired Magician of Pain with her triton. Chris's life points dropped from 3100-1100. "Now my Cure Mermaid and Mermaid Shark Tamer with attack you directly!"

"I activate my facedown trap Graveyard Trappings! If I pay 500 life points, I can activate a trap card from my graveyard, and then remove that trap from play. So I activate Negate Attack!" Cure Mermaid's and Mermaid Shark Tamer's attacks stopped.

Rubye shrugged. "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards. "Now I activate the spell card The Book of the Life and Death Spells. This card can only activate if I have Magician of Life on the field and Magician of Death in my graveyard. Then it sends Magician of Life to the graveyard to special summon my Sage of the Universal Ways in attack mode (3000/2000)." An old man wearing long brown robes and hold a long wooden staff that had a large black jewel on the end of it appeared on the field. "Now I activate the effects of my Sage of the Universal Ways! When I remove Magician of Death from my graveyard every card, except this card, are destroyed!" Sage of the Universal Ways held its staff up, and blasted beams of energy blasted everything on the field. "Now if I remove Magician of Life from my graveyard, I can double Sage of the Universal Ways' attack points (3000-6000). Now my Sage of the Universal Ways will attack you directly!" Sage of the Universal Ways attacked Rubye and her life points dropped to 0. Cheers came from Dustin and Caden, and groans came from Rubye's three sisters.

Chris walked over to Rubye and helped her up. "Good duel."

"You too." Rubye replied. Suddenly a voice came over the intercom. "Attention all students, we will be docking shortly. Please gather your things and report on deck." Chris looked up to the bow of the ship and saw the island. He saw that Rubye, her sisters, Caden, and Dustin where walking away, so he joined them. He found his room, gathered his things, and got back on deck.

Be the time he got there, students where already embarking onto the island. He joined the line of students coming down the gangplank. Nearby, two Obelisk Blue students were watching the students embark. The first was a third year Obelisk Blue boy. He was tall and slightly muscular. He had short black hair and had clear blue eyes. The second was a second year Obelisk Blue girl. She was about a half a head shorter than the boy. She had long brown hair and brown eyes. They were standing close together, holding hands.

"So this ship has the most new students." commented the boy.

"I think so." replied the girl. "It is the last ship to arrive, and according to the schedule that last ship to arrive was from Dormir City. And what I heard from Chancellor Arthur, the ship from Dormir City was supposed to have the most new students."

The boy put his arm around the girl's shoulders and held her close to him. "I hope this will be a normal year, or at least not like last year." The girl started to cry silently.

"I still miss him, Trevor." said the girl.

"It's alright, Alexandra." replied Trevor. "It's okay to miss him. He was your brother after."

Alexandra gulped and wiped her eyes. "I've got to control myself. Doesn't the Chancellor what to announce something today?"

"Yes he does." replied Trevor. "He wants everybody there. Come on, lets go." They walked away towards the main building.

Meanwhile, Chris and the rest of the new students were being herded towards a small building near the docks. Inside the buildings, Chris was placed in a line with Caden, Dustin, and Rubye. The line ended at a table stacked with Ra Yellow jackets. When Chris got to the table, he was handed five Ra Yellow jackets wrapped in plastic. He was also given a piece of paper that had his room number on it. He was then pushed out of the building and a man pointed him to where the Ra Yellow Boys Dorm was. After a five minute walk, Chris reached the Ra Yellow Dorm and found his room. It was a large room. It had a decent size bed, a couch, a closet, and a desk with a computer. He put away his clothes and put on one of his Ra Yellow jackets. It fit him perfectly.

On the paper that had his room number on it, there was a short message on the back. It read, 'All students are to meet in the auditorium at 1:00. Chris checked the clock on the computer to see what time it was. It read 12:30. He decided he should probably try to find the auditorium. He left the Ra Yellow Boys Dorm and walked down a trail that led to Main Building. He reached the Main Building and wondered around until he found the auditorium. The auditorium was almost full, but Chris found a seat next to Caden and Dustin.

An old man holding a microphone walked out into the middle of the auditorium. "Welcome to Duel Academy students!" he said. His voice boom from several speakers witch caught everyone's attention. "To those who don't know, I am Chancellor Arthur. Normally I would only make a speech to the new students, but I have some special announcements to make. First off, I'd like to announce that a new facility has been added to the academy called the Duel Disk Modifier. This special workshop will allow students to customize their duel disk to a degree."

"Wow, that's cool!" shouted several students. Chancellor Arthur held up his hand for silence.

"Now for my second announcement." continued Chancellor Arthur. "A track has been built for the newly developed Riding Duels!" Shouts of glee and excitement came from the crowd.

"YES!" shouted Dustin, jumping up and down.

Chancellor Arthur held his hand up and the crowd fell silent. "Now there are some conditions to that. First, you must sign a waiver and take tests that show you are able to do Riding Duels. Also the school will provide D-Wheels. Now for my next announcement. It is a sorrow to say that Professors Asinda and Shilam have left the school faculty."

This was met with a roar of delight from the students. No one was sad that they were gone, and for good reason. Professor Asinda was horrifyingly boring and Professor Shilam was a terrible teacher. Chancellor Arthur held his hand up for silence again. "Replacing Professor Asinda in Dueling history is Professor Aaron Ooka!"

The crowd clapped politely as the man walked out next to Chancellor Arthur. He was about as old as Chancellor Arthur, and about the same height. He had thinning brown hair that was turning white, and a pepper-and-salt mustache. He walked with a cane and a slight limp.

"Also, replacing Professor Shilam in Duel Monsters Studies is Professor Anthia Saigo!" shouted Chancellor Arthur. Chris had to do a double take. At first, he thought that he had misheard. But there she was! Anthia was walking out and standing next to Professor Aaron.

"Hey Chris, is she a relative of yours?" asked Caden.

"She's my sister." Chris replied. Caden and Dustin laughed. They stopped when Chancellor Arthur raised his hand again.

"Now for the most special announcement I have." said Chancellor Arthur with a wide smile. "This year starts the first of what will happen every four years! So I am proud to announce that this year will see the beginning of a worldwide Duel Academy tournament called the National Academy Championship!" The students were silent, stunned. Nothing like this had ever been done before. "The ten best duelists of the four best Duel Academies of the Eastern Hemisphere will fight it out for the title of Eastern Hemisphere Duel Academy Champion. Then they will face the Western Hemisphere Champion whose duel academies will be holding a similar tournament. Now everyone will have a fair chance to become one of ten representatives of our school. When you win a duel, you get Duel Points. Then, at the end of the month, the top ten duelists with the most Duel Points will be selected as the representatives. Also, one representative will be a Riding Duelist." The crowd was silent with awe. Chancellor Arthur smiled at them. "Now go, my students. Get yourselves settled in and prepare from tomorrows classes and duels!"

The students erupted into mindless noise as they filed out of the auditorium. Most where excited about what they had just heard. Chris, on the other hand, was very tired. Since there where now classes today and the Duel Points counting would start until tomorrow, Chris went straight to his room and went to sleep almost immediately.

* * *

"So that was the special thing that Master Adelie mentioned." said Edon as he and Faron were walking out of the auditorium. "This will be interesting!"

"Hey Edon?" asked Faron.

"What Faron?" asked Edon.

"How'd Master Adelie, Myrine, you and I become Obelisk Blues?" asked Faron, looking down at his Obelisk Blue uniform. "First years aren't supposed to start out as Obelisk Blues."

Edon chuckled. "Master Adelie arranged it to be. Now go prepare yourself for tomorrow so you can start getting Duel Points." Edon then walked off in one direction and Faron walked of in another.

* * *

The sun was seating on Duel Academy. Trevor and Alexandra watched the sun from a bench near the Obelisk Blue Girls dorm. They were holding hands and Alexandra was resting her head on Trevor's shoulder. "A tournament, who exciting!" Alexandra said out loud. "I just wish that Oliver was here. He would have enjoyed it." Alexandra felt like crying again, but she suppressed it. "Trevor, have you heard anything about Brian and Rachel?"

Trevor chuckled. "Brian's here. I talked to him for a few seconds after Chancellor Arthur's announcement. Rachel, on the other hand, couldn't come. Her parents wouldn't let her."

"Oh," said Alexandra. "That's too bad." She felt sorry for Rachel. She had liked duel so much, and now she couldn't enjoy doing it with other people. The sun had set and night was falling.

"Come on," said Trevor. "It is time to get back to our rooms before we get busted for curfew violation." Trevor and Alexandra stood up. They embraced each other and kissed each other passionately. "Good night." whispered Trevor.

"Good night." Alexandra whispered back. They turned and went to their dorms.

* * *

**Magician of Life**

**Type: **monster/light/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **5

**Stats: **(2000/0)

**Effect: **When this card is discarded from your hand, special summon it to the field.

**Magician of Death**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **5

**Stats: **(0/2000)

**Effect:** When this card is discarded from your hand, destroy one monster on the field.

**Sage of the Universal Ways**

**Type: **monster/earth/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(3000/2000)

**Effect:** This card cannot be normal summoned or set. This card can only be special summoned by the effect of 'The Book of the Life and Death Spells'. The following effects can only be activated when the mentioned monster is removed from play. 'Magician of Life'- double the original attack points of this monster. 'Magician of Death'- all cards, except this card. on the field are destroyed. If a end phase occurs when neither a 'Magician of Life' nor a 'Magician of Death' or in your graveyard, this card is destroyed.

**The Book of the Life and Death Spells**

**Type: **normal spell

**image: **a book with one white cover with a Magician of Life on it, and another cover that was black with a Magician of death on it.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when a 'Magician of Life' is on the field, and a 'Magician of Death' is in the graveyard. Send 'Magician of Life' to the graveyard and special summon one 'Sage of the Universal Ways' from your hand, deck, or graveyard.

**Combo Casting**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a Dark Magician and a Dark Magician Girl pointing their staffs at a large fiend. They are both launching magical energy at the fiend simultaneously.

**Effect: **Select two spellcaster type monsters on your side of the field. Destroy one monster on the field whose attack points are equal or less to the combined attack points of the two selected spellcaster monsters. The two selected spellcaster monsters can't attack the turn this card is activated.

**Graveyard Trappings **

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **a graveyard with small bear traps scattered around it.

**Effect: **Pay 500 life points to activate a trap card from your graveyard. Then remove the selected trap card from play.

**Metal Shell Crab **

**Type: **monster/water/fish

**Level:** 4

**Stats: **(0/2000)

**Effect: **none.

**Mermaid Shark Tamer**

**Type: **monster/water/warrior-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2300/1700)

**Effect: **When this card destroys a monster by battle, special summon one level 4 or lower 'fish' type monster from your deck in defense mode.

**Guardian Shark**

**Type: **monster/water/fish-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1800/1300)

**Effect: **When this card is faceup on the field, tribute is card to prevent the destruction of one monster with 'Mermaid' in its name by battle, spell, trap, or monster effect.

**Alys the Ocean Princess**

**Type: **monster/water/aqua-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1200/600)

**Effect:** As long as this card is faceup on the field, all 'water' attriubte monsters cannot be destroy by opponent's spells, traps, or monsters effects.

**Alys the Ocean Queen**

**Type: **monster/water/aqua-effect

**Level: **8

**stats: **(3200/2500)

**Effect: **This card can't be normal summoned or set. This card can only be special summoned by the effect of 'Coronation of the Ocean Queen'. When this card is summoned, special summon up to three monster with 'Mermaid' in their name from the graveyard. This card is unaffected by the effects of your opponent's spells, traps, or monster effects. When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, inflect 1000 points of damage to your opponent's life points.

**Coronation of the Ocean Queen**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a old mermaid placing a large crown on the head of a Alys the Ocean Princess.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when 'Alys the Ocean Princess' is on the field. Send 'Alys the Ocean Princess' to the graveyard to special summon one 'Alys the Ocean Queen' from your hand or deck.

**Shellfish Clamp**

**Type: **equip spell

**Image: **a fisherman with several clams clamped onto him.

**Effect: **A monster equipped with this card loses 400 attack points.

**Call of the Sirens**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a island with several sirens on it. The sirens are luring a ship to the island to be destroyed by the jagged reefs and large rocks around it.

**Effect: **Select one monster on your side of the field and select one monster on your opponent's side of the field. The opponent's selected monster must attack your selected monster.

**Mermaid Magic**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a mermaid waving around a small wand with fish shooting out of the tip of the wand.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when a monster with 'Mermaid' in its name is on the field. Take one spell card from your deck and add it to your hand.


	4. First Day Duels

The sun was rising over Duel Academy the next morning. By now, most of the older students were awake. However, most of the newer students were still asleep. But something special was in mind for them. Over the summer break, new clocks had been added to the rooms. The clocks had very loud alarm bells that could wake anyone up. It could be shut off, but only if one examined the clock.

Unfortunately for Chris, he hadn't discovered the alarm. So at 7:00 a.m. the alarm went off. The deafening noise caused Chris to literally jump from his bed. He ran to the clock and punched the snooze button. Grumbling to himself, Chris took a shower and put on his Ra Yellow jackets and tan pants. As he was leaving his room, he noticed a piece of paper tacked to his door. Grabbing the piece of paper, he realized that it was his schedule.

Placing the paper in his pocket, Chris made his way to the Ra Yellow cafeteria. He couldn't find Caden or Dustin so he grabbed Breakfast and ate it in silence. After eating his breakfast, he went to the main building. His first class was Dueling Strategies, taught by Professor Toma. Chris thought that this class was sort of interesting. Professor Toma was a good teacher and taught about interesting things, but one can only enjoy a class so much.

The next class was Spells/Traps Usage, taught by Professor Ginsea. Chris decided that he hated this class within the first five minutes. First, he didn't like Professor Ginsea. Professor Ginsea resembled a woman and was very biased. That became clear when he asked an Obelisk Blue what Pot of Greed does, then asked a Slifer Red to explain the effects of Dangerous Machine Type 6. Secondly, most of the questions were questions anyone could answer if they paid any attention to anything dueling related.

Then came lunch. He still was unable to find Caden or Dustin so he had no one to talk too. The next class he had was Dueling History, taught by Professor Aaron. Chris didn't know whether or not this guy was better than the last guy. According to the older students he had heard talking, Professor Aaron was better than the last guy. Professor Aaron did make lectures, but he used diagrams, prepared presentations and other things.

Chris's next class was surprisingly PE. Chris thought he had misread his schedule, but he found that the class was in a gymnasium. The class was taught huge, muscular man named Professor Higema. Chris soon found that he did not like this class much either. The class was mostly running several laps around the gym. By the time the class was over, he was very tired. But he still had one more class to go to.

His last class was Duel Monsters Studies, taught by his sister Anthia. He really hoped that his sister would not pronounce the fact that they were siblings. He was one of the last students to enter the class. He side into a seat in the middle of the room.

Anthia was sitting at her desk at the bottom of the room. She was looking down at some papers on the desk. Once the bell rang, so stood up and took attendance. Once she was finished, she put away the list of students.

"Welcome to Duel Monsters Studies students." she said, looking around at them. "I think to start the year off, we should have a duel. So who would like to volunteer?" Several hands went up. She pointed to a Ra Yellow boy in the back row. "You there, in the back. Peter, was it?"

"Yes, Professor." said the boy. He was about a head taller than everyone else. He had short brown hair and cold, emotionless face. He walked down to the front of the room.

"Alright, who else would like to volunteer?" asked Anthia. This time, only Chris rose his hand. Anthia pointed to him. "Alright, come down here Chris." Chris went down to the front of the room. Chris and Peter took up positions across from each other. "I'll flip a coin." Anthia flipped a coin. "Who calls heads?"

"I do." said Chris. Anthia nodded and flipped the coin. It went up into the air and Anthia caught it, and slapped it onto her arm. She lifted her hand. It was tails.

"Peter gets to go first." Anthia said as she moved out of the way so the duel could start. They both drew their hands. Chris put on his reading glasses as Peter drew his sixth card.

"I set one monster in defense mode." said Peter coldly as he placed the card facedown. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Blast Magician in attack mode (1400/1700). Now my Blast Magician will attack your facedown!" Blast Magician lifted his staff and fired several fire balls at the facedown monster, blasting it to pieces.

"The card that you attacked was my Deep Space Probe (500/500)." said Peter coldly. "When it is flipped, I get to add a card from my deck to my hand."

"Fine, I place one card facedown and end my turn." finished Chris.

Peter drew a card. "I activate the spell card Heavy Storm! This will destroy all spell and trap cards on the field." Peter's facedown and Chris's facedown cards were destroyed. "Next, I summon Card Dragon in attack mode (1900/0)." A small origami dragon made of cards appeared on the field. "Now my Card Dragon will destroy your Blast Magician." Card Dragon fired a stream of flaming cards at Blast Magician and destroyed it. Chris's life points dropped from 4000-3500. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Swords of Revealing Light! This will stop your attacks for three turns." Large shinning swords appeared on the field, stopping his monsters. "Next I set one monster facedown. Then I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Peter drew a card. "I activate the trap card The Balance of Power. When this trap cards is activated, I get to take three monsters whose level is 3 or less from my deck." Peter took three cards from his deck. "Now you get to special summon one monster whose level is 4 or less from your hand."

This surprised Chris. Why would Peter help him like that? Chris started to worry about the cards that Peter took from his deck. "Okay, I special summon A Man with Wdjat in defense mode."

"I end my turn without doing anything else." Peter said, folding his arms across his chest.

Chris drew a card. "I sacrifice my facedown monster to summon Chaos Command Magician in attack mode (2400/1900). Now my Chaos Command Magician will destroy your Card Dragon!" Chaos Command Magician pointed its staff at Card Dragon. Magical energy blasted out of the staff and hit Card Dragon, destroying it. Peter's life points dropped from 4000-3500.

"I activate the effect of Card Dragon." Peter said coldly. "When it is destroyed, I get to add a card from my deck to my hand." Peter took a card from his deck and added it to his hand. "I win." he said simply.

Chris almost fell over. "What?" he shouted. "Who do you figure that?!" Peter took five cards from his hand and flipped them around. "Exodia!" Chris shouted as the life point counter dropped to 0.

"The winner is Peter Noro!" said Anthia clapping lightly. The crowd started clapping politely as Chris and Peter returned to their seats. Some students snickered at Chris walked past them. Chris didn't pay any attention to anything else of the class. He was fuming with rage over his quick defeat. When the class ended, he stormed from the room before anyone could comment. He stormed out of the main building, determined to destroy the first duelist he came upon. Luckily for him, the first duelists he saw were a group four of Slifer Reds.

"Hey you guys!" Chris shouted. "I want to duel one of you!"

A largest of the Slifer Red boys stepped forward. He was both taller, and wider than the rest of the boys. He also had light blonde hair and was slightly tanned. "I am Isao Abe." he said. "I am the leader of the Crimson Comets!"

Chris stopped. "The what?"

"The Crimson Comets!" Isao shouted. "We are the Slifer Reds who are the top of our class!"

Chris put on his reading glasses and activated his duel disk. "I don't care who you are. I just want to duel."

"With us, it is not that simple." said Isao. "In our group, you have to duel from the bottom up. Then…"

"I don't care!" Chris shouted. "Lets just get the duels started."

Isao stepped back and the smallest boy of the group stepped forward. "I am Yori. Since I am the lowest member of our group, you will duel me first."

"Finally!" Chris shouted in relief. Both picked up their hands. "Since you'll lose, I'll let you go first."

"I'm going I'm going!" muttered Yori as he drew a card. "I summon Karate Man in attack mode (1000/1000). Next, I play two cards facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. By now, Chris had calmed down and was thinking clearly. "I summon The Spell Caller in attack mode (1400/1200)." A young man in flowing robes, holding a large wooden horn appeared on the field. "I activate the effect of my Spell Caller. If I pay 800 life points, I can take two spell cards from my deck. However, I chose to by 1600 life points so I can take two spell cards from my deck." Chris's life points dropped from 4000-2400 as he took two cards from his deck. "Now I activate one of the spell cards I just took, which is Heavy Storm!"

A large storm appeared and blew away Yori's spell and trap cards. "Next," continued Chris. "I activate the other spell card I took from my deck, Magical Dimension! This allows me to sacrifice my Spell Caller so I can special summon my Dark Magician in attack mode (2500/2000). Lastly, my spell card will destroy your Karate Man!"

Yori gasped as Karate Man was destroyed. "No! I'm defenseless!"

"Gee, yeah think!" Chris said sarcastically. "I activate one more spell card known as Megamorph! Since my life points are lower, my Dark Magician's attack points are doubled (2500-5000/2000). Dark Magician, attack him directly!" Dark Magician pointed its staff at Yori and fired a ball of black magical energy that bashed Yori into the ground, his life points dropping to 0. Yori got up off the ground and ran behind the rest of the Crimson Comets.

A boy, slightly taller than Yori, with short, dyed blue hair stepped forward. "I am Nao. I will be your next opponent." He activated his duel disk.

"I'll be nice and let you go first." said Chris as he shuffled his deck and drew his hand.

Nao nodded as he drew his sixth card. "I summon Abaki in attack mode (1700/1100). Next, I play two cards facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magician of Null and Void in attack mode (1400/200)." A tall man wearing a long, black robe appeared on the field. "Now I equip my monster with Axe of Despair! This will increase my monster's attack points by 1000!" A small axe appeared in Magician of Null and Void's hands, and his attack points rose to 2400. "Now my Magician of Null and Void will destroy your Abaki!"

"Nope! Because I activate the trap card Negate Attack!" shouted Nao as his trap card flipped up. It shattered instantly. "What the…!"

"I guess that now is as good a time as any to mention my monster's effect." said Chris. "Once per turn, he can negate any spell or trap card." Magician of Null and Void destroyed Abaki. Nao's life points dropped from 4000-2800, and Chris's life points dropped from 4000-3500. "No need to explain Abaki's effect. I finish off by placing one card facedown."

Nao drew a card. "I summon Flame Tower in attack mode (0/1100)." A large tower that was in flames from top to bottom appeared on the field. Suddenly, four balls of flame jumped from the burning tower and landed in Nao's monster slots. "When this monster is summoned, I get four flame tokens (1000/1000)." explained Nao. "Since they are on the field, you can't attack my Flame Tower. I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate my facedown trap card Skill Drain! If I pay 1000 life points, the effects of all effect monsters are negated."

"Crap!" shouted Nao as the flame tokens from Flame Tower disappeared. Chris's life points dropped from 3500-2500.

"Next I equip my Magician of Null and Void with Black Pendent, increasing his attack points by 500!" shouted Chris (2400-2900/200). "Magician of Null and Void will attack your Flame Tower and destroy the rest of your life points!" Magician of Null and Void charged forward and slashed Flame Tower in half with Axe of Despair. Nao life points dropped to 0.

Nao ran off to stand by Yori. Both looked down at the ground in shame. The third Slifer Red stepped forward. This time, it was a girl with long blond hair and slightly taller than Nao, but shorter than Isao. "I am Aimi. I am your next opponent."

"Okay." said Chris, shuffling his deck again. "I'll be a gentleman and let you go first."

"Why thank you," Aimi said sarcastically. She drew her hand and a sixth card. "I summon Warrior Princess in attack mode (1600/1200)." A young woman wearing shinning metal armor and holding a short sword appeared on the field. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magical Exemplar in attack mode (1700/1400). Now I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards. "This in turn activates the effect of my Magical Exemplar. When a spell card is activated, two spell counters are placed on it (SCx2). Now my Magical Exemplar will destroy your Warrior Princess!"

"I activate the trap card Negate Attack!" shouted Aimi. "This stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

Chris shrugged. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Aimi drew a card. "I summon Queen of Defense in attack mode (0/2100)." A woman in long robes holding a large staff with a shield carving on the end of it appeared on the field. "Next, I play the spell card Block Attack, which I use to switch my Queen of Defense to defense mode." Queen of Defense switched to defense mode and two more tokens appeared on Magical Exemplar (SCx4). "I end my turn by placing one card facedown."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Reload! This allows me to shuffle my hand into my deck and draw the same number of cards!" Chris shuffled his hand back into his deck and drew a new hand. Two more tokens appeared on Magical Exemplar (SCx6). "Now my Magical Exemplar will attack your Warrior Princess!" Magical Exemplar fired a ball of magical energy at Warrior Princess.

"I activate the effect of my Queen of Defense!" shouted Aimi. "Once per turn, I can negate one attack." A force field appeared around Warrior Princess and Magical Exemplar's attack bounced off.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Chris.

Aimi drew a card. "I equip my Warrior Princess with Sword of Royalty! This will increase her attack points by 600." A large magnificent sword appeared in Warrior Princess's hands (1600-2200/1200). Then two spell counters appeared on Magical Exemplar (SCx8). "Now my Warrior Princess will attack your Magical Exemplar!" Warrior Princess charged forward.

"I activate the trap card Negate Attack!" shouted Chris. "I know you already know what is does so continue your turn." Warrior Princess's attack was negated.

"I end my turn." muttered Aimi.

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Lightning Vortex (ME SCx10)!" Chris shouted. "If I discard a card from my hand, all over you're faceup monsters are destroyed!" Bolts of lightning rained down from the sky and destroyed Warrior Princess and Queen of Defense. "Now I activate Magical Exemplar's other effect. For ever spell counter I remove from her, I can special summon a monster whose level is equal to the number of removed spell counters." Chris smirked. "I remove eight spell counters so I can special summon my Dark Magician in attack mode (2500/2000). Now my Dark Magician and my Magical Exemplar will attack your life points directly!"

Dark Magician and Magical Exemplar attacked simultaneously and Aimi's life points dropped to 0. She ran away to stand next to Nao and Yori. Isao sighed. "If you want something done, you got to do it yourself." He activated his duel disk. Chris noted that he had been to the Duel Disk modifier. It was bright red with a pattern of comets running across it.

"Finally," said Chris as he shuffled his deck once more.

"I may be a Slifer Red, but I'm no push over." said Isao. He drew his hand, and then drew a sixth card. "I summon Space Rock in attack mode (0/0)." A rock about the size of a human head appeared on the field. "Next, I play the field spell Asteroid Field!" Suddenly, several hundreds of rocks in all shapes and all sizes appeared between Chris and Isao. "Whenever we attack, we must flip a coin. If heads, the attack continues as normal. If tails, the attacking monster is destroyed. I finish my turn by placing one card facedown."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Star Witch in attack mode (1700/1300). I chose to place one card facedown and end my turn."

Isao drew a card. "I activate the effect of my Space Rock. When one is faceup one the field during my standby phase, I can special summon another one from my deck." A second Space Rock appeared on the field. "Next I activate the spell card Star Gazing! This allows me to look at the top three cards of my deck. Then I gain 200 life points for every monster." Isao picked up three cards. "Would you look at that! All three are monsters!" Isao's life points rose to 4600. "Now I summon my Star Man in attack mode (400/700)." A small cartoonish star with large eyes, and small arms and legs appeared on the field. "My Star Man has an interesting effect. He can attack your life points directly. Also, he is unaffected by spells or traps so he can bypass my Asteroid Field." Star Man jumped into the air, flew over Asteroid Field, and slammed into Chris. His life points dropped from 4000-3600. "I finish my turn by placing one card facedown."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Sage of Spell Absorption in attack mode (1500/1600). I activate the effect of my Sage of Spell Absorption to destroy your Asteroid Field."

"Not so fast!" shouted Isao. "I activate the trap card Stars of Ill Omen!" A constellation of stars formed as a skull appeared above Sage of Spell Absorption. A black aura appeared around him. He winced as he fell to one knee. "My trap card has negated your monster's effect." explained Isao. "Also, it switches your monster to defense mode."

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Chris.

Isao drew a card. "My third and finally Space Rock come to my field." said Isao as the third Space Rock appeared next to the other two. "I activate the spell card Meteor Shower! Since I have a Space Rock on the field, this card will inflect 1000 points of damage for each one on the field!" The three space rocks flew high into the air and came down right on Chris. His life points dropped from 3600-600. "Now my Star Man will attack your life points directly!" Star Man flew over Asteroid Field and kicked Chris in the back of the head. His life points dropped from 600-200. "I finish my turn by place two cards facedown."

Chris drew a card. "I sacrifice my Sage of Spell Absorption and my Star Witch to summon my Mystical Paladin in attack mode (2000/2000). Now the effect of my Star Witch activates! When it is sent to the graveyard, I get to take two spell cards from deck." Chris took two cards from his deck. "I activate one of the spells I just took, Heavy Storm! This will destroy every spell or trap card on the field." A large storm appeared on the field and blew away Asteroid Field, Isao's and Chris's cards. "Next I activate the other spell card I took, Megamorph. This will double my monster's attack points (2000-4000/2000). Last, but not least, I activate the spell card Curse of the Spellcaster. If I remove one spellcaster from play I can inflect half of that monster's attack points as damage to your life points. So I remove my Star Witch from play to inflect 850 points of damage." Isao's life points dropped from 4600-3750. "Now my Mystical Paladin will attack your life points directly!" Mystical Paladin charge forward and hit Isao with its sword, causing him to be thrown back three or four feet.

Isao got to his feet. "Grr……good duel….I suppose…." Isao said, and the rest of the Crimson Comets ran off towards the forest nearby.

"Oh come on!" Chris shouted after them. "Show some dignity!"

"Who are you shouting at Chris?" Chris turned around to see Rubye walking towards him.

"Hello Rubye." said Chris, as he took off his reading glasses. "We you watching want just happened?" Rubye shook her head. "Good, because you didn't want to see that. I mean I know there just Slifer Reds, but I was hoping for more of a challenge than that!"

Rubye giggled at Chris's exasperation. "By the way, they're going to start the school's first Ridding Duel. Do you want to come watch?"

"Sure." replied Chris, as he followed Rubye to the Ridding Duel Stadium.

* * *

**Chris's Cards**

**The Spell Caller**

**Type: **monster/light/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/1200)

**Effect: **You may pay 800 life points to take one spell card from your deck and add it to your hand. This effect can be used a maximum of three times per turn.

**Magician of Null and Void**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/200)

**Effect: **Once during your, or your opponent's turn you may negate a spell or trap card and destroy it.

**Curse of the Spellcaster**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a skeleton in old wizard's robes pulling a maiden down into a grave.

**Effect: **Remove one spellcaster monster from your graveyard from play. Then inflect half of that monster's attack points as damage to your opponent's life points.

**Peter's Cards**

**Deep Space Probe **

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(500/500)

**Effect: **Flip: take one card from your deck and add it to your hand.

**Card Dragon**

**Type: **monster/fire/dragon-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1900/0)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, add one card from your deck to your hand.

**The Balance of Power**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a large, green scale. on one side is the ojama brothers. On the other side as a Vorse Raider.

**Effect: **Take three level 3 or lower monsters from your deck and add them to your hand. Then your opponent can special summon a level 4 monster from their hand if possible.

**Nao**

**Flame Tower**

**Type: **monster/fire/pyro-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(0/1100)

**Effect: **When this card is summon, fill all available monster slots with Flame Tokens (1000/1000). As long as there is a flame token on the field, this card can't be attacked. During your turn, you may discard on monster from your hand to special summon one Flame Token.

**Aimi **

**Warrior Princess**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/1200)

**Effect: **none

**Queen of Defense**

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(0/2100)

**Effect: **Once per turn, you may negate one battle.

**Sword of Royalty**

**Type: **equip spell

**Image: **a large, beautiful sword.

**Effect: **This card can only be equipped to a 'warrior' type monster. Increase that monster's attack points by 600.

**Isao's cards**

**Space Rock**

**Type: **monster/dark/earth-effect

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **During your standby phase, special summon one 'Space Rock' from your deck or hand in attack mode.

**Star Man**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(400/700)

**Effect: **This card can't be affected by spell or trap cards. This card can attack your opponent's life points directly.

**Meteor Shower**

**Type: **quick spell

**Image: **several meteors falling down onto a fiend.

**Effect: **When this card is activated, inflect 1000 points of damage to your opponent for every 'Space Rock' on your side of the field.

**Asteroid Field**

**Type: **field spell

**Image: **a large asteroid field containing rocks of all shapes and all sizes.

**Effect: **When a monster attacks, the owner must flip a coin. If heads, the attack goes on as normal. If tails, the attacking monster is destroyed.

**Star Gazing **

**Type: **spell

**Image: **a small boy looking up at the night sky with a telescope.

**Effect: **Pick up the top three cards of your deck. You gain 200 life points for every card that is a monster. Place the three cards back on the deck in the same order.

**Stars of Ill Omen **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a constellation in the shape of a skull.

**Effect: **Negate the effects of one monster on the field. The switch that monster to defense mode.

* * *


	5. Start! Riding Duel!

The stadium had been built in the middle of the island's forest in an oval shape. It wasn't a large stadium due to size constraints. It was also very simple. On the outside of the stadium, there were several doors that lead to different levels of the stands. On the ends of the stadium, there where sets of medium sized doors for the D Wheels could be wheeled in and out. Next to the stadium, there was a small building. Across the front of building, there was a sign that read 'D Wheel Garage'.

Chris and Rubye entered the stadium. It was packed, except for the top rows. Chris looked up at the top rows and saw Caden waving at him to come up. Chris went up to where Caden was sitting and sat down next to him.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?" asked Rubye, who had followed Chris.

"Sure." said Chris and he and Dustin moved over a seat so Rubye could sit down. "Where is Dustin?" asked Chris, having to shout over the noise of the crowd.

"He's in the duel!" Dustin shouted back. "Look, there down there now!" Caden pointed down to the field. On the track, there were two motorcycles. One yellow, and one Blue. Caden was pointing at the yellow motorcycle. There was a person wearing a yellow suit and yellow helmet that had a Winged Dragon of Ra stamped on it.

"Testing, testing, one two three." came a voice from a speaker system. "Hello students of Duel Academy! This is Taro Asano, designated announcer for the school's Ridding Duel here to welcome you to the school's first Ridding Duel!" A loud cheer came from the ground. "But first an explanation is needed. When the Ridding Duel starts, the field spell Speed World is automatically activated. This field spell card makes it so no spell cards, but Speed Spell cards can be activated. Also, each player gains a Speed counter. But, enough talk. Lets get on with the duel!"

Another cheer came from the crowd as two large score boards lit up. Both of them had a picture of Caden and a picture of an Obelisk Blue named Kyo Amori. "Now lets get this Ridding Duel started!" shouted Taro. "Ready! Ridding Duel! Acceleration!" At that moment, both D Wheels roared to life and shot off.

"Obelisk Blue Kyo Amori will start off the duel!" shouted Taro as Kyo drew a card (SC k-1, d-0).

"I summon Rose, Warrior of Revenge in attack mode (1600/600). I place two cards facedown and end my turn." said Kyo, placing the cards on his duel disk.

Dustin drew a card (SC k-1, D-1). "I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

"That could have been a bad move for Dustin!" shouted Taro as Kyo drew his card (SC k-2, d-2). "It has given Kyo a huge lead."

"I'm not stupid kid." said Kyo. "I know that is a trap so I summon Anti-trap Machine (500/1500)!" A small, disc shape machine appeared behind Kyo's D Wheel. "So card will allow me to negate any trap that destroys a monster. So my Rose, Warrior of Revenge will destroy your facedown!" Rose, Warrior of Revenge jumped towards the facedown monster, swinging her sword.

"I activate my trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" shouted Dustin. "This trap will take your monster's attack and return to facedown position." Rose, Warrior of Revenge's sword hit the Scrap-Iron Scarecrow with a loud clang. Rose, Warrior of revenge returned to the side of Kyo's D Wheel and Scrap-Iron Scarecrow returned facedown.

"Smart move on Dustin's part!" shouted Taro. "Since Scrap-Iron Scarecrow didn't destroy the monster, it was unaffected by Anti-trap Machine!"

Dustin drew a card (SC k-3, d-3). "I summon Speed Warrior in attack mode (900/300). Now my Speed Warrior will attack your Rose, Warrior of Revenge!" Speed Warrior sped towards Rose, Warrior of Revenge. A purple aura appeared around it as its attack points rose to 1800. Speed Warrior kicked Rose, Warrior of Revenge, destroying it. Kyo growled as his life points dropped from 4000-3800.

"To those who don't know Speed Warrior's attack doubles during the owner's battle phase!" shouted Taro.

Up in the stands, Chris jumped as Taro's shout went out over the loudspeakers. "Ouch…" he muttered rubbing his ear. "Why do they even need an announcer anyway!?!?"

"I suppose it is to add more excitement." replied Rubye.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Dustin.

Kyo drew a card (SC k-4, d-4). "I activate my facedown trap Call of the Haunted to bring back my Rose, Warrior of Revenge!" Kyo's card flipped up and Rose, Warrior of Revenge jumped out of it. "Next, I sacrifice my Rose, Warrior of Revenge to summon Rocket Dragon in attack mode (2200/1900)." A large half dragon, half missile monster appeared on the field. "Now my Rocket Dragon will destroy your Speed Warrior!" Rocket Dragon blasted towards Speed Warrior.

"I activated the trap card Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" shouted Dustin, as the scarecrow made of scrap iron appeared in front of Speed Warrior. Rocket Dragon blasted right through Scrape-Iron Scarecrow and slammed into Speed Warrior, destroying it. "Wait, what just happened!" shouted Dustin as his life points dropped from 4000-2700 (SC k-4, d-3) and as his D Wheel's speed decreased.

"That was the effect of my Rocket Dragon." replied Kyo. "When it attacks, any trap cards you activate are negated and destroyed."

"What an excellent move!" shouted Taro. "With Scrap-Iron Scarecrow gone, Dustin can no longer protect his monsters."

"Next, I activate the continuous trap card Factory of Duplication!" shouted Kyo as a large factory appeared above him. "The first thing I need to do this sacrifice my Anti-trap Device to activate my trap." A door on the factory opened and Anti-trap Machine flew into the door. "Now I get a Duplicate Token with the same stats, level, and attribute of one monster on the field that is the same type of monster that I sacrificed." Another, larger door on the factory opened and a Rocket Dragon flew out of it. "The only catch is that the token only has half of that monster's attack and defense points (1100/950). Now my Duplicate Token will attack your facedown monster!" Duplicate Token blasted towards the facedown monster. It flipped up and a shield blocked the attack. Kyo's life points dropped from 3800-3300.

"Poor Kyo!" shouted Taro. "His Duplicate Token didn't have enough attack points."

"What you attacked was my Shield Warrior." said Dustin. "And like what Taro just said, your monster didn't have enough attack points."

"I end my turn." growled Kyo.

Dustin drew a card (SC k-5, d-4). "I activate the Speed Spell Angel Baton! This allows me to draw two cards, then discard one." Dustin drew two cards and discarded a card. "I summon Speed Synchron in attack mode (900/700)!" A small robot appeared next to Dustin's D Wheel, speeding along with the aid of a large jet pack. "I tune my Speed Synchron and my Shield Warrior to synchro summon!"

"What an amazing turn of events!" shouted Taro as Speed Synchron shattered into orbs of light and formed a circle around Shield Warrior. "A synchro summon can only be done when a tuner monster is on the field. To do the summoning, the tuner and monster whose total star level equal the star level of the synchro monster!"

"Come fourth, **SONIC WARRIOR **(2400/2000)**!**" Dustin shouted as his monster appeared. It was a large robotic figure in bright blue armor. It held a large sword in one hand and a large red shield in its right hand. Two large rockets were on its back, with four smaller rockets bolted on each foot. "When my Sonic Warrior is synchro summoned, I'm allowed to special summon one level 4 or lower monster from my graveyard. So I summon Speed Warrior in attack mode (900/300). Now my Sonic Warrior will destroy your Rocket Dragon!" In a flash, Sonic Warrior and shot past Rocket Dragon, slicing it in half, and speed back to Dustin's D Wheel before anyone realized what had happened. Kyo's life points dropped from 3300-3100. Then Duplicate Token shattered.

"Kyo is left defenseless thanks to the secondary effect of Factory of Duplication." Taro explained as the crowed muttered amongst themselves in confusion. "When the original monster that Duplicate Token copied is destroyed Duplicate Token gets destroyed as well."

"Now my Speed Warrior will make a direct attack at your life points!" shouted Dustin. Speed Warrior slid towards Kyo as his attack points rose to 1800, and kicked his D Wheel. Kyo's D Wheel's speed decreased (SC k-4, d-4) and his life points dropped from 3100-1300. "I place one card facedown and end my turn.

Kyo drew a card (SC k-5, d-5). "I activate the Speed Spell Call of Normal! This allows me to special summon one normal monster whose level is 6 or lower. So I special summon my Summoned Skull (2500/1200). Now I summon my Special Tuner Unit in attack mode (350/500)." A small, cylinder shaped machine appeared next to Kyo's D Wheel. "Now I tune my Special Tuner Unit and my Summoned Skull to synchro summon my **RED DEMON'S DRAGON **(3000/2000)!" The dragon gave a mighty roar as it appeared above Kyo. A couple of students ducked under their seats as Red Demon's Dragon swooped over them. "Now my Red Demon's Dragon will annihilate your Sonic Warrior!" Red Demon's Dragon roared and spit a stream of flame at Sonic Warrior.

"I activate the effect of the Shield Warrior that is in my graveyard!" shouted Dustin. "If I remove it from my graveyard, my monster won't be destroyed."

"But the same can't be said for your life points!" shouted Kyo as the flames of Red Demon's Dragon bounced off of Sonic Warrior and slammed into Dustin's D Wheel, causing it to wobble. Dustin's life points dropped from 2700-2100. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

"Could this be the end for Dustin?" Taro shouted over the cheering crowd. "Red Demon's Dragon has 3000 attack points! If he can't do anything this turn, then he'll be done for."

Dustin drew a card (SC k-6, d-6). "I activate the Speed Spell Sonic Boom! This allows me to add a Speed Spell card from my deck to my hand." Dustin reached for his deck and took one card. "The side effect of my Speed Spell is that if I use the Speed Spell, I lose 1000 life points. But I think I'll activate it anyway. I activate the Speed Spell Spirit of Speed (2100-1100)! This card will double the attack points of one monster on my side of the field. But at the end of my turn, it will destroy the monster and inflect the monster's attack points out of my life points."

"This is a risky move for Dustin!" shouted Taro as Sonic Warrior's attack rose to 4800. "If what he is trying doesn't work, he'll lose the duel!"

"Sonic Warrior! Destroy Red Demon's Dragon with your Sonic Slash attack!" shouted Dustin. Sonic Warrior sped towards Red Demon's Dragon, swinging its sword high above his head.

"I activate Negate Attack!" shouted Kyo. "This will stop your attack and ends your battle phase."

"I activate the trap card Synchro Protection!" shouted Dustin. "This card will protect my Sonic Warrior from spells, traps, or monster effects."

"No!" shouted Kyo as Sonic Warrior blasted towards Red Demon's Dragon and slashed Red Demon's Dragon in several pieces, and Kyo's life points dropped to 0. Suddenly, small vents opened on Kyo's D Wheel and steam started gushing out of the vents, causing his D Wheel to come to a halt.

"And the winner is Dustin Seo!" shouted Taro as the crowd cheered. Dustin waved up at the crowd as he took a victory lap around the stadium. After the victory lap, Dustin dismounted and wheeled the D Wheel out of the stadium as did Kyo.

Caden jumped from his seat and ran down to talk to Dustin. Chris and Rubye slowly stood up and walked out of the stadium. She walked off to the Ra Yellow Girl's dorm and said a brief "See you tomorrow." Chris watched her go.

"Maybe I should ask her out." Chris said to himself as he walked towards his dorm. Unbeknown to Chris, two certain students hear him. More specifically, they were Faron and Edon

"Ah, young love." said Faron as he gestured towards Chris's retreating form. "Doesn't it give you that certain tingly feeling?"

"Faron, what the heck are you talking about?" asked Edon, stepping away from Faron.

"You know. Didn't your parents ever give you the birds and the bees speech?" asked Faron.

Edon took a swing at Faron, but Faron leaned back causing the punch to fly past him. "Are you a pervert are something!" he shouted. Faron gave a chuckle and disappeared with a small pop. "Now where did you go!?"

Faron reappeared behind Edon. "Right behind you!" Faron shouted. Edon jumped and kicked out with his right foot, hitting Faron right crotch. Faron doubled over in pain. "Oh, that's smarts." Edon grabbed Faron by the scruff of the neck and heaved him into a standing position.

"Before I give in to my urge to beat the crap out of you, I what to know what Madam Adelie want?" asked Edon.

"Madam Adelie wants us to be on the lookout for someone who could be a scientist." said Faron.

"Why does Madam Adelie need a scientist?" asked Edon.

"I don't know!" shouted Faron. "What do you think I am her personal confidant?"

"Hum, I suppose not." said Edon scratching his chin. "I think I might know just the person..."

* * *

**Speed Synchron **

**Type:** monster/wind/machine-tuner

**Level: **3

**Stats:** (900/700)

**Effect: **If this card is drawn outside of the draw phase, special summon it to the field and draw one card.

**Sonic Warrior**

**Type:** monster/wind/machine-synchro

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2400/2000)

**Effect: **[Speed Synchron]+[1 or more non tuner monsters]. When this card is synchro summoned, special summon one level 4 or lower monster from your graveyard.

**Speed Spell-Sonic Boom**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a jet flying low over a city, with the sonic boom blowing people over.

**Effect: **You can only activate this card if your Speed Counters are 4 or higher. Take one Speed Spell from your deck and add it to your hand. If that Speed Spell card is played, you lose 1000 life points.

**Speed Spell-Spirit of Speed **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a Speed Warrior with a blue arua around it.

**Effect: **You can only activate this card if your Speed Counters are 6 or higher. Select one monster on your side of the field. The selected monster's attack points are doubled. At the end of this turn, the selected monster is destroyed and inflect the monster's original attack points as damage to your life points.

**Synchro Protection**

**Type: **counter trap

**Image: **Junk Warrior, Turbo Warrior, and Nitro Warrior standing behind a semitransparint barrier.

**Effect: **Until the end of the turn, all synchro monsters on the field are unaffected by spells, traps, or monster effects.

**Anti-trap Machine**

**Type: **monster/dark/machine-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(500/1500)

**Effect: **As long as this card is faceup on the field, you may chose to negate trap cards that destroy a monster(s).

**Rocket Dragon**

**Type: **monster/wind/dragon-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2200/1900)

**Effect: **When this card attacks, any trap cards that are activated are negated and destroyed.

**Special Tuner Unit**

**Type: **monster/dark/machine-tuner

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(350/500)

**Effect: **This card is the only card on the field, special summon one monster from your hand whose level is 3 or lower.

**Speed Spell-Call of Normal**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **Several normal type monsters appearing on the field at once.

**Effect: **You can only activate this card if you have 5 Speed Counters or higher. Special summon one normal monster from your hand to the field.

**Factory of Duplication **

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **A large factory producing several identical machine.

**Effect: **Tribute faceup monster on your side of the field. Select one monster on your side of the field that is of the same type of the monster sacrificed. Special summon one 'Duplicate Token' with the same level, effect, attribute, and half the attack and defense points of the selected monster. If the selected monster is destroyed, the 'Duplicate Token' is destroyed as well.


	6. The Sience of Dueling

It was late at night, almost midnight. The moon was partially blocked out by the clouds. There was a slight breeze that blew bits of debris across the ground. Very few stars will visible. Two solitary figures moved across the silent scene. They slipped unnoticed into the Obelisk Blue Boy's dorm and up the stairs to one specific room. The two figures moved into a beam of moonlight which revealed them to be Faron and Edon.

"Why are we sneaking around our own dorm in the middle of the night?" asked Faron.

"Because we don't want anyone to interfere." said Edon. "We don't want to going around parading the fact that we're here. Also, it's past curfew."

"Wait, this place has a curfew?" asked Faron.

Edon groaned. "Yes, you idiot!" he whispered threateningly. "Didn't you read the rule book?"

"No." replied Faron. Edon slapped his hand over his face and sighed. "By the way, who are we going to see anyway?"

"An old associate of mine." said Edon with a sadistic smile on his face. "Madam Adelie said she wanted a scientist, and this associate of mine fits the bill almost perfectly."

"So who is he?" asked Faron.

"His name is Masaru Iida." replied Edon. "I know him from grade school. He was a nerd who was getting the crap beaten out of him. One day, he hired me to protect him from bullies and I provided my services until we graduated from grade school. He is up to his eyes in debt to me."

Edon stopped suddenly and Faron slammed into Edon. "Hey, why did you stop?"

Edon hit Faron on the head. "Because we at his room, you idiot." said Edon. He pointed to the nameplate on the door that had Masaru Iida carved on it.

Edon knocked on the door. He continued to knock on the door until light could be seen from under the door. They heard footsteps cross the room. The door opened. Standing in the doorway was a second year Obelisk Blue. He was taller than both Edon and Faron. He had short, shaggy brown hair and his skin was slightly pale. There was a small scar on his left check and large, thick glass sat upon his face.

"What do you want?" asked the boy in a tired voice. He first looked a Faron, and then his gaze went to Edon. What little color in his face drained away. "Edon." he gulped.

Edon cracked his knuckles menacingly. "Hello Masaru." he said in a cheery voice. "I suppose you know why I'm here?" Masaru nodded. "Good, now if you'll grab your duel disk and follow me." Edon and Faron waited outside of Masaru's room for Masaru as he put on some clothes and grabbed his duel disk. He reappeared at the door, duel disk clamed to his arm.

Edon motioned for Masaru to follow him. Edon, Faron, and Masaru walked silently out of the dorm and headed into the forest. After pushing through some of the underbrush, they came to a same clearing. Edon went to one side of the clearing and motion for Masaru to go to the other side of the clearing.

"Now, I think you should know the steaks of this duel." said Edon as he shuffled his deck. "If you win, I will cancel your debt. "If I win,…well, you'll just have to wait and see." Masaru nodded as he shuffled his deck. Edon and Masaru placed their decks in their duel disks and drew their hands.

"I'll go first." said Edon as he drew a card. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Masaru drew card. "I summon Element-Cu-Copper in attack mode (900/1400)." A small copper statue appeared on the field. "Element-Cu-Copper will attack your life points directly!" The copper statue clanked forward.

"I activate the trap card Forced Recruitment!" shouted Edon. "This allows to special summon one warrior type monster from my hand to the field in defense mode. So I special summon Bomber Soldier in defense mode (1250/0)." A man in a blue military uniform appeared on the field. Grenades and plastic explosives were hanging very different parts of his shirt and pants. Element-Cu-Copper's attack slammed into Bomber Soldier. Bomber Soldier shattered, but several grenades flew into the air and landed in front of Masaru. After a few seconds, they exploded.

"What the heck was that!?" shouted Masaru as his life points dropped from 4000-3500.

"That was due to the effect of my Bomber Soldier." explained Edon. "When it is destroyed, you lose 500 life points."

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." muttered Masaru.

Edon drew a card. "I summon Heavy Attack Soldier in attack mode (1800/1600)." A soldier in a blue military uniform holding a large bazooka appeared on the field. "My Heavy Attack Soldier will now destroy your Element-Cu-Copper." Heavy Attack Soldier lowered its bazooka at Element-Cu-Copper and fired at it.

"I activate the trap card Metal Meltdown!" shouted Masaru. "This will switch my Element-Cu-Copper to defense mode!" The copper statue started to melt until it was a copper blob. Then Heavy Attack Soldier's attack slammed into it, causing it to shatter.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Edon.

Masaru drew a card. "I summon Element-Ac-Actinium in attack mode (1300/800)." A silvery, metallic rock appeared on the field. "Now its effect activates! Since Actinium is dangerously radioactive, all monsters, except this card, lose 600 attack and defense points!" Element-Ac-Actinium started to glow and Heavy Attack Soldier's attack points dropped from 1800-1200. "Now my Element-Ac-Actinium will destroy your Heavy Attack Soldier!" Several shards of the rock came off the rock and flew at Heavy Attack Soldier.

I activate the trap card Helicopter Evac!" shouted Edon. "A helicopter appeared on the field and Heavy Attack Soldier climbed into the helicopter, which flew away. 'This trap card will send Heavy Attack Soldier to my hand instead of the graveyard. But life point damage still calculates though." said Edon as he added Heavy Attack Soldier to his hand and his life points dropped from 4000-3900.

"I end my turn." said Masaru.

Edon drew a card. "I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Edon drew two cards. "The effect of one of my cards I drew activates. Since I drew it outside of my draw phase, I'm allowed to special summon Paratrooper in attack mode (1200-600/800-200)." A man in a light grey uniform with a parachute on his back and a small rife in his arms appeared on the field. "Now I sacrifice my Paratrooper to summon my Heavy Machine Gunner in attack mode (2300-1700/1200-600)!" A large, muscular man in camouflage uniform holding a large machine gun appeared on the field. "Now my Heavy Machine Gunner will attack your Element-Ac-Actinium!" Heavy Machine Gunner swung its machine gun at Element-Ac-Actinium and blasted it to pieces.

"The second effect of my Element-Ac-Actinium activates!" shouted Masaru. "When it is destroyed by battle, you lose 500 life points!" The pieces of Element-Ac-Actinium flew up into the air and rained down on Edon, his life points dropping from 3900-3400.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Edon.

Masaru drew a card. "Remember that Element-Cu-Copper that you destroyed awhile back?" Edon nodded. "Well it has an interesting effect. If I remove it from the graveyard, I can special summon my Element-Ac-Actinium from my graveyard in defense mode (1300/800). "Now I sacrifice my Element-Ac-Actinium to summon my Element-W-Tungsten in attack mode (0/2500)." A piece of steel-gray metal appeared on the field. "I then activate the spell card Hydrochloric Acid! This card will destroy one card on the field, so say goodbye to your Heavy Machine Gunner!" A beaker appeared above Heavy Machine Gunner and dumped its contents on Heavy Machine Gunner. It yelled in pain as the acid burned it away. "I end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "I summon Special Recon Soldier in attack mode (1300/900)." A man in green and black camouflage uniform with a small machine on its back holding a small assault rifle appeared on the field. "Now my Special Recon Soldier will destroy your Element-W-Tungsten." Special Recon Soldier raised its assault gun and fired it at Element-W-Tungsten, but the bullets bounced off.

"The effect of my Element-W-Tungsten allows my monster to not be destroyed by battle." said Masaru. "It also decreases the damage that I take by half." he said as his life points dropped from 3500-2850.

"That's true, but my monster has an effect as well." said Edon. "Since my Special Recon Soldier inflected battle damage, I get to look at a card from your hand." Special Recon Soldier walked over to Masaru, took a card from his hand, and walked over to Edon and showed him the card. Edon studied it for a moment, and Special Recon Soldier returned the card to Masaru. "I think that's enough for now."

Masaru drew a card. "First, I switch my Element-W-Tungsten to defense mode. Next I summon my Element-He-Helium in attack mode (1400/200)." A small bright red balloon with a big white H on it appeared on the field. "Now, Element-He-Helium will destroy your Special Recon Soldier!" Element-He-Helium floated over to Special Recon Soldier, wrapped its string around its neck, and floated up causing Special Recon Soldier to choke and shatter. Edon's life points dropped from 3400-3300. "Now I activate the effect of my Element-He-Helium activates. When it destroys a monster, I can special summon one monster with 'Element' in from my hand. So I special summon my Element-Mg-Magnesium in attack mode (1000/1000)." A grayish-white piece of metal appeared on the field. "Now my Element-Mg-Magnesium will attack your life points directly!" Element-Mg-Magnesium flew towards Edon like a throwing disk and hit Edon square in the chest. His life points dropped from 3300-2300. "Now the effect of my Element-Mg-Magnesium activates. When it attacks, you have to discard a card from your hand." Edon discarded a card from his hand. "I end my turn."

Edon chuckled as he drew a card. "This duel is over."

"What? Are your surrendering?!" shouted Masaru and Faron in unison.

"No, but allow me to show you why." said Edon. "I activate my facedown trap, Naval Gunfire Support! Since you have three more monsters on the field than I do, this trap will destroy all of your monsters!" There was a sound that sounded like distant thunder. Then, after a long silence, there was a screeching shouted. Then several objects dropped out of the sky and hit Element-W-Tungsten, Element-He-Helium, and Element-Mg-Magnesium. Upon contact, the objects exploded and destroyed the monsters. "Now I activate the spell card Afterlife Blitzkrieg! This allows me to summon three 'warrior' type monsters from my graveyard with 1500 attack points or less. So I special summon Special Recon Soldier (1300/900), Bomber Soldier (1250/0), and Paratrooper (1200/800) in attack mode. Now, my monsters, attack him directly and end this duel!" Paratrooper, Bomber Soldier, and Special Recon Soldier ran towards Masaru and punched him in the face simultaneously. The force of the blow knocked Masaru unconscious and he fell backwards onto the ground.

Suddenly, a dark figure appeared out of the shadows in the forest. Faron and Edon turned to the figure, expecting some type of an attack. The figure stepped into a beam of moonlight. It was Adelie. She had an evil smile on her face and she was clapping softly.

"Very good Edon." she said. "So you are earning your keep. I knew that this Masaru was the person I needed, but why reveal my powers yet. I thought that this would be an excellent way to test you."

Edon bowed. "Thank you, Madam. If you knew that I knew Masaru and he was the person you were looking for, then why didn't you just ask me to duel him?"

"Because I wanted to see if you could figure it out yourself." said Adelie. She then walked towards the unconscious Masaru and knelt down towards his head. She held up her right hand and pointed out with her index finger and her middle finger. "While Masaru here is very smart, he is in need of some improvements." Then she took her fingers and stabbed them into Masaru's forehead. She then withdrew her hand leaving a small, black hole on Masaru's forehead. Then blackness started to seep out of the hole. The blackness started to cover Masaru's body until his body was completely covered. Then the blackness started to dissolve into Masaru's skin until it was completely gone.

Adelie stood up. "Can you hear me, Masaru Iida?" she asked.

Masaru's eyes opened. "Yes, I can." he replied in a monotone.

"Who is your master?" Adelie asked.

Masaru got off his back and knelt before Adelie. "You are, master."

"Good, you may rise." said Adelie. Masaru stood up, still in a slight bow. Adelie held out here hand as a dark mass appeared in her palm. The dark mass transformed into a small notebook. She handed the notebook to Masaru. "I want you to read this and develop a way to, well let us just say you need to figure out a way to make it a reality."

"Yes, I will master." said Masaru.

Adelie turned and walked back into the shadows. "Now go about doing what you would normally do until I tell you otherwise. And that also goes for you two too, Edon and Faron." Adelie then disappeared into the darkness.

There was a moment of silence. "Well, you heard her!" said Faron, breaking the silence. "Good night you all!" Then he disappeared make a small pop noise. Masaru and Edon walked back to the Obelisk Blue Boy's Dorm.

"Is that Faron guy always like that?" asked Masaru.

"You have no idea." replied Edon.

* * *

**Bomber Soldier**

**Type: **monster/fire/warrior-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(1250/0)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, inflect 500 points of damage to your opponent's life points.

**Heavy Attack Soldier **

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1800/1600)

**Effect: **When this card attacks a monster in defense position, that monster is automatically destroyed. Battle damage is calculated as normal.

**Paratrooper **

**Type: **monster/wind/warrior-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(1200/800)

**Effect: **When this card is drawn outside of the draw phase, you may special summon this card in face up attack or defense position.

**Heavy Machine Gunner**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2300/1200)

**Effect: **This card can attack every monster on you opponent's side of the field. If this is done, all battle damage is negated.

**Special Recon Soldier**

**Type: **monster/dark/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1300/900)

**Effect: **When this card inflects battle damage to your opponent, you may look at one card in your opponent's hand.

**Afterlife Blitzkrieg **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **Several skeletons in several styles of armor, wielding different weapons exploding out of the ground and charging a group of knights.

**Effect: **Special summon three warrior type monster from your graveyard that have 1500 attack points or less. At the end of the turn this card is activated, returned the selected monsters to the graveyard.

**Forced Recruitment **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a large group of soldiers dragging several young men to an army truck.

**Effect: **Special summon one level 4 or lower warrior type monster from your hand in defense mode.

**Helicopter Evac **

**Type:** trap

**Image:** several wounded soldiers being loaded into a helicopter.

**Effect: **When a warrior type monster is destroyed, send that card to your hand instead of the graveyard.

**Naval Gunfire Support **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **several large warships in a line firing at some distant target.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated when your opponent has three or more monsters and you have no monsters one you side of the field. Destroy all monsters on your opponent's side of the field.

**Element-Cu-Copper**

**Type: **monster/earth/rock-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(900/1400)

**Effect: **Remove this card from your graveyard to special summon one monster with 'Element' in its name from your graveyard.

**Element-Ac-Actinium **

**Type: **monster/earth/rock-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1300/800)

**Effect: **As long as this card is face up on the field, all of your opponent's monsters lose 600 attack and defense points. When this card is destroyed, inflect 500 points of damage to your opponent.

**Element-W-Tungsten **

**Type: **monster/earth/rock-effect

**Level: **5

**Stats: **(0/2500)

**Effect: **This card can't be destroyed as a result of battle. When this card is involved in a battle where you would lose life points, decrease the damage by half.

**Element-He-Helium **

**Type: **monster/wind/winged-beast-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/200)

**Effect: **When this card destroys a monster, special summon one monster with 'Element' in its name whose attack points are equal or less than the monster destroyed.

**Element-Mg-Magnesium **

**Type: **monster/earth/rock-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **When this card inflects battle damage to your opponent, your opponent must discard one card from their hand.

**Hydrochloric Acid **

**Type: **quick spell

**Image: **a beaker of hydrochloric acid.

**Effect: **destroy one monster on the field.

**Metal Meltdown **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a piece of melting metal.

**Effect: **Switch one rock type monster from attack to defense mode.


	7. Mechinized Rampage

Three weeks had passed since the night of Duel Academy's first Riding Duel. Chris had spent most of the two weeks doing homework, dueling people, and trying to ask Rubye on a date without success. Every time he tried to ask her out, one of three things happened. What would happen was he would either lose his nerve, be challenged to a duel by someone, or Rubye would go somewhere where he could follow her, like a female restroom.

The stress of the situation made Chris want to pull his hair out! Caden and Dustin were of no help, for when he confided in them, they laughed him off. He was not willing to ask his sister Anthia either. If he did, she would make fun of him and then tell their parents and they would make things worse. Besides, he also figured, she was probably very busy with her teaching duties any way.

He thought that fate was conspiring against him until one bright Sunday afternoon. Since it was a weekend, most of the students were lingering around no specific area doing nothing of significant importance. Chris was taking a walk down one of the school's many trails trying to think of a way to corner Rubye so he could ask her out. He rounded a blind curve in the trail when suddenly a missile shot past him.

"What the heck!" Chris shouted as he ducked to avoid another twenty missiles that shot over his head. When Chris looked ahead of him along the trail, he saw that there was a duel in process. He realized that one of the duelists was Rubye, and she looked in bad shape! The only thing on her field was Alys the Ocean Queen, while her opponent had a field full of machine type monsters.

"Now that all of your spells and traps have been destroyed, I think I'll activate my Limiter Removal which will double the attack points of all my machine monsters! Now my Perfect Machine King will destroy your pitiful mermaid!" sneered her opponent, who was an Obelisk Blue. His Perfect Machine King fired several missiles at Rubye's monster, destroying it. Her life points dropped from 1700-0. Rubye screamed as the forced of the blast knocked her off her feet.

The Obelisk Blue smirked maliciously as he walked over to Rubye. He grabbed her by the arm and forced her to stand up. "I hope you remember our deal?" asked sneered tighten his grip on Rubye. She gasped in pain.

That set Chris of. He ran towards the Obelisk Blue and hit him with a hard uppercut. The Obelisk Blue was knocked off his feet and landed in the dust. Suddenly, two Obelisk Blues appeared from what seemed like nowhere and attacked Chris. The first threw a punch at Chris, but Chris dodged the punch. Unfortunately for Chris, the second Obelisk Blue's kick caught him square in the stomach. Then the first Obelisk Blue punched Chris in the back of the head, knocking him down to the ground. Before he could react, the two Obelisk Blues place their feet on his head, keeping him down on the ground.

The original Obelisk Blue got to his feet. He spit blood and what looked like a piece of a tooth out of his mouth. He glared down at Chris. "You dare hit your better?! You and your type of trash need to learn their place!" The Obelisk Blue brought his foot back to kick Chris, but Chris grabbed the legs of the Obelisk Blues holding him down and pulled hard. The two Obelisk Blues fell over and Chris jumped to his feet. The Obelisk Blue laughed. "Well, it looks like he still has some fight left in him." The other two Obelisk Blues got to their feet but the other Obelisk Blue waved them off. He lifted his left arm and activated his dark blue duel disk. "I think I'll duel you and see if you're worth the trouble of beating up."

Chris nodded. He put on his reading glasses and activated his Duel Disk. "Now, before we go any further, I want to know what this was about."

The Obelisk blue smirked. "I am Hiromi Hojo, the 'elected most handsome duelist at Duel Academy'!" Hiromi took a comb from his school blazer and combed his hair. Hiromi was tall, fit, and was tanned. He also had bright blue eyes and had a shock of straight dark hair.

Chris stared at Hiromi. "What? Is there a male version of the Miss Duel Academy Contest?"

Hiromi sighed. "No you idiot. I was elected in the school newspaper. But, I digress. So see, I have a lot of girlfriends. So when I saw this beautiful group of beautiful girls I decided to add them to my collection of girlfriends." Hiromi gestured to the side of the trail. Chris suddenly realized that Rubye's sisters where sitting on a log, looking almost murderous at Hiromi.

"So you treat females as objects?" asked Chris.

"Well, not all of the time. But on occasion, I do." replied Hiromi.

"That's disgusting!" Chris spat.

Hiromi shrugged. "Think whatever you want. Sorry, I digress again. When I discovered that these beauties did not want to be my girlfriends, I decided to duel them, and I suppose you can guess what happened next."

"You've got some serious problems." said Chris.

Hiromi laughed. "Sticks and stones man, sticks and stones. But now we should start the duel!" said Hiromi as he drew his hand.

Chris drew his hand. "Just to make things more interesting, I say we add a bet. If I win, you have to leave Rubye and her sisters alone. If you win, they remain your girlfriends and you and your friends can beat me to a pulp.

"I agree to those terms." said Hiromi as he drew a card. "I chose to set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magician's Valkyria in attack mode (1600/1800). Now Magician's Valkyria will attack your facedown." Magician's Valkyria pointed her staff and shot a stream of green energy at the facedown. When it hit the monster, the energy bounced off, and Chris's life points dropped from 4000-3800.

"What you attacked is my Machiners Defender (1200/1800)." said Hiromi. "Now its flip effect activates. It allows me to take a monster known as Commander Covington." Hiromi took a card from his deck and added it to his hand.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Chris.

Hiromi drew a card. "I activate the continuous spell card Organic to Mechanic Conversion!" shouted Hiromi as a large, mechanical box-like structure appeared behind Hiromi. "Now this card has a very interesting effect. But how about I show you what it does." Hiromi snapped his fingers. A hatch opened on the box structure and several chains flew out of the hatch and wrapped around Magician's Valkyria. Then the chains started to rewind into the hatch, dragging Magician's Valkyria with them. "Yeah know, there is something about a tied up woman that excites me." commented Hiromi as Magician's Valkyria was dragged into the hatch.

"Keep your perverted thoughts to yourself!" shouted Chris.

Hiromi shrugged. "Whatever. Anyway, my spell card will turn your monster into a machine type monster and lower its attack and defense points by half." The large machine roared into life, making grinding and crunching sounds. Then a hatch on top of it opened up and a robot version of Magician's Valkyria jumped out of the machine (800/900). "Now I summon Machiners Soldier in attack mode (1600/1500). Now my Machiners Soldier will destroy your mechanized Magician's Valkyria!" Machiners Soldier charged towards Magician's Valkyria and cut her in half with its sword. Chris's life points dropped from 3800-3000. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I play the field spell Magical City Endymion!" A large city appeared behind Chris. It was circular in design, with four small towers along the sides with one larger tower in the middle of it. "Now I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior in attack mode (1600-1900/1000). Now I activate the effect of my Breaker the Magical Warrior. If I remove his spell counter, I can destroy one spell or trap card. So say goodbye to your Organic to Mechanic Conversion!" Breaker the Magical Warrior lifted his sword and made a slashing motion in the air. Energy flew from his blade and destroyed Organic to Mechanic Conversion (1900-1600/1000). "Now I activate my facedown trap, Pitch-Black Power Stone! When this card is activated, three spell counters are put on it. Then once per turn, I can move one spell counter. So I move one spell counter to my Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600-1900/1000). Now my Breaker the Magical Warrior will destroy your Machiners Soldier!" Breaker the Magical Warrior charge forward and sliced Machiners Soldier to pieces and Hiromi's life points dropped from 4000-3700. "I finish by placing one card facedown."

Hiromi drew a card. "I activate the spell card Premature Burial! This allows me to special summon a monster from my graveyard at the cost of a mere 800 points. So I special summon my Machiners Soldier." Hiromi's life points dropped from 3700-2900. "Next I summon my Machiners Sniper in attack mode (1800/800). Now I activate the spell card Double Summon, which gives me an extra normal summon this turn. So I summon my Commander Covington in attack mode (1000/600). Now I activate the effect of my Commander Covington! He allows me to send Machiners Soldier, Machiners Sniper, and Machiners Defender to the graveyard to special summon **Machiners Force **in attack mode (4600/4100). Now my great machine will destroy your Breaker the Magical Warrior!" Machiners Force lower every weapon it had at Breaker the Magical Warrior and blasted it to smithereens. Chris's life points plummeted from 3000-300, then Hiromi's life points dropped from 2900-1900. "My Machiners Force requires that I pay 1000 life points for it to attack. I finish this turn by playing the spell card Recycling Machines! This allows me to draw a card for every machine type monster in my graveyard." Hiromi drew three cards. "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "First I move a spell counter from my Pitch-Black Power Stone to my Magical City Endymion. Next, I activate the spell card Pot of Greed. This spell card allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards as the pot briefly appeared on the field. "I set one monster facedown and set one card facedown. I end my turn."

Hiromi drew a card. "I activate the spell card Cost Down! This will downgrade the monsters in my hand by two levels if I discard a card from my hand." Hiromi discarded a card from his hand. "I sacrifice my Commander Covington to summon **Perfect Machine King** in attack mode (2700-3200/1500). Perfect Machine King, destroy his facedown with your awesome power!" Panels opened up on Perfect Machine King and several thousand missiles shot from Perfect Machine King. The missiles slammed into the facedown card, and obliterated it.

"What you attacked was my Magician of Faith!" shouted Chris. "She allows me to take a spell card from my graveyard and add it to my hand." Chris took a card from his graveyard and added it to his hand.

"That won't help you!" shouted Hiromi. "Machiners Force! Finish off this worthless piece of trash!" Hiromi's life points dropped from 1900-900 as Machiners Force fired its weapons at Chris. The resulting explosion kicked up a cloud of dust.

"No! Chris!" shouted Rubye. She tried to run towards Chris, put on of the Obelisk Blues stopped her.

Hiromi laughed. "Now that that's done with…"

"Who ever said that this duel was over?" The dust settled to reveal Chris, and his life points hadn't changed. "You haven't won yet Hiromi."

"What!?" shouted Hiromi. "You should have lost!"

"I would have if I hadn't activated my trap card." replied Chris. He held up the card. "The trap card known as Enchanted Javelin to be specific! This trap card increased my life points by your monster's attack points before your attack connected."

"I end my turn." growled Hiromi.

Chris drew a card. "I move my last spell counter from my Pitch-Black Power Stone to my Magical City Endymion, which in turn destroys my Pitch-Black Power Stone." Pitch-Black Power Stone shattered. "Then I activate the Pot of Greed I took from my graveyard with Magician of Faith." Chris drew two cards. He chuckled. "This duel ends now."

Hiromi laughed. "Yeah, how do you figure that?"

Chris laughed. "You see, every time you activated a spell card, a spell counter was added to my Magical City Endymion. And when you destroyed my Breaker the Magical Warrior the spell counter on him was added to my Magical City Endymion. Then add on the two from Pitch-Black Power Stone. That comes up to a total of 7!"

"So, what's your point?" scoffed Hiromi.

"My point is that I can do this!" shouted Chris. "I remove 6 spell counters from my Magical City Endymion to special summon my **Divine Magician Deity Endymion **in attack mode (2700/1700). When he is special summoned, I get a spell card from my graveyard!" Chris took a card from his graveyard. "Now I send my Pot of Greed back to the graveyard to activate the effect of my Divine Magician Deity Endymion. When I discard a spell card from my hand, he can destroy one card on the field, so say goodbye to your Machiners Force!"

Machiners Force shattered, but Machiners Defender, Machiners Sniper, and Machiners Soldier reappeared on the field. Hiromi laughed. "When Machiners Force goes to the graveyard, I'm allowed to special summon these monsters back to the field. That, in turn, increases the attack power of my Perfect Machine King!" Perfect Machine King's attack points rose to 4200.

"The attack points of Perfect Machine King doesn't matter." Chris chuckled. "He's not my target."

Hiromi was puzzled. "Then what is your tar…OH CRAP!" Hiromi suddenly realized that Machiners Sniper, Machiners Defender, and Machiners Soldier were all in attack mode.

"Divine Magician Deity Endymion, destroy his Machiners Sniper and end this duel!" shouted Magician Deity Endymion nodded, and blasted Machiners Sniper with his staff. Machiners Sniper was destroyed and Hiromi's life points dropped from 900-0.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" shouted Hiromi, falling to his hands and knees. Rubye screamed in delight. She ran over to Chris and started hugging him, causing Chris to blush bright red. Rubye's sisters stood up and started to cheer, while the other two Obelisk Blues looked to Hiromi for instructions. Hiromi glared at Chris. "You may have won this duel, but this humiliation must be punished!" Hiromi gestured to the two Obelisk Blues to surround Chris. "I am going to beat you so bad that you'll be in a coma for weeks!" he growled. Chris put up his fist and braced himself for the attack.

"Hold everything!" Everyone turned to see a certain black haired Obelisk Blue standing in the path. "Three-on-one fight? That won't do at all!"

"Who the heck are you!?" shouted Hiromi.

The Obelisk Blue seemed a little surprised. "What, you really don't know who I am?" Everyone, except for Rubye's sisters who were staring in awe at the Obelisk Blue, nodded. The Obelisk Blue sighed. "I knew that I wasn't popular, but this is too much!"

"Never mind who you are!" shouted Hiromi. "We are going to teach this trash a lesson in pain, so unless you want to join him I would suggest that you keep out!"

The Obelisk Blue chuckled. "No, I really don't want a 'Lesson in Pain' but I'm afraid I can't let you give that lesson to anyone. In fact, I can beat all three of you with only one hand."

Hiromi and the other two Obelisk Blues laughed. "Alright, we'll take that challenge." Hiromi and the two Obelisk Blues surrounded the Obelisk Blue. One Obelisk Blue charged at the latest Obelisk Blue, but he ducked, grabbed the fist and threw him over his back. The Obelisk Blue flew through the air and crashed into the second Obelisk Blue, knocking them both out. Hiromi then charge at the Obelisk Blue. At the last second, he stepped to the side and Hiromi's punch flew past his head. The Obelisk Blue punched Hiromi in the stomach, and then quickly punched him in the side of the head. Hiromi stumbled sideways and hit a tree. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

The Obelisk Blue chuckled. "Boy, they never learn." The Obelisk Blue turned and saw Chris and Rubye's dumfounded looks. The Obelisk Blue's hand shot out. "Where are my manners? I am Trevor Gasina. Obelisk Blue, expert dragon duelist, and Kaiser of this school." Chris and Rubye both shook Trevor's hand. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some one that I have to meet." With that, Trevor ran off down the trail.

"Rubye, may I ask you a question?" Chris asked.

"Sure," replied Rubye. "I'll be with you guys in a minute!" she shouted to her sister as they began to walk away. Rubye turned back to Chris.

"Would you like to go on a date with me?" he asked, blushing.

There was a long silence. Rubye started to blush as much as Chris. "Yes, I would."

"On what date do you want it to be?" asked Chris.

"On Friday!" said Rubye excitedly. "Spirit Day is on Friday and we could go in costumes!"

"Wait, Spirit Day is this Friday?" asked Chris.

"Yeah, they had to move it because of the National Academy Championship." replied Rubye. "So is that okay with you?"

"Yeah, that's okay with me." Chris said. Then Rubye did something that caught Chris off guard. She kissed him on the cheek.

"I'll see you then." she said and walked off to join her sisters. Chris felt the place where Rubye kissed him. He smiled and jumped up into the air.

"YAHOO!"

* * *

While this was going on, two certain students where creeping through the forest. In the lead was Adelie, and following her was Masaru.

"If I may ask you Madam Adelie, where are you taking me?" asked Masaru.

"To your new lab." replied Adelie. "I require your services, for I have some projects that need working on."

"I aim to please." Masaru said dutifully.

"Good." Adelie said as they came into a clearing. "We're here." She pointed to a dorm. The dorm was rundown and in disrepair. A large sign stood in front of it saying 'Danger. Keep out'. "Have you ever been in the Abandon Dorm?"

"No, I can't say that I have." answered Masaru. "But I see why it would be a good place to hide stuff."

Adelie waved her hand. "Come, I still need to show you the lab." Adelie and Masaru entered the Abandon Dorm. They went up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway. They stopped in front of a large jet black door. Adelie opened the door and they both went inside the room. It was a very large room. The room was filled with machinery, tables, and other material of scientific use.

"Wow." Masaru said as he examined the room.

Adelie took two large folders from a table and handed them both to Masaru. "These contain very thing you need to know about the projects I need you to work on. Show these to no one. Also, I want you to start working immediately.

Masaru bowed. "Yes, I shall get started immediately." He sat at a table and started to read the contents of the folders.

"Good." said Adelie as she walked out the door and closed it. She walked out of the Abandon Dorm. She smiled as she disappeared into the forest.

"Soon." she said to herself. "Soon I will have my revenge."

* * *

**Organic to Mechanic Conversion **

**Type: **continuous spell

**Image: **a large box like machine with animals being dragged into and robotic animals coming out of a hatch.

**Effect: **During your main phase, select one none machine type monster on your opponent's side of the field. That monster becomes a machine type monster and its attack and defense points are decreased by half.

**Recycling Machines**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **A large mobile machine walking in a junk yard collecting trash and put it in a large bin on its back.

**Effect: **Draw one card for each machine type monster in your graveyard.


	8. A MiniTournament Part 1

Two days had passed since Chris had asked Rubye out on a date. After they had decided that they would go out on Friday, which was Spirit Day, he went back to his dorm room and sent an E-mail to his parents asking them to send him his Dark Magician costume. On this day, Tuesday, the costume arrived and was left in his Dorm room. After his classes, Chris went to his dorm room to test and see if the costume still fit him.

Chris opened the box it was in and laid it out on his bed. They had forgotten to send the staff. Muttering under his breath, Chris put the costume bit by bit. Chris walked over to the mirror and studied the costume. Chris sighed. It still fit alright, but he looked ridiculous. While Dark Magician was one of Chris's favorite monsters, he didn't like to dress like him.

Suddenly the door opened and Caden and Dustin walked in. "Hey Chris. Do you…." Caden was saying, but stopped dead when he saw Chris in the Dark Magician costume. Caden and Dustin looked at him for a moment, and they both fell over laughing.

"Oh shut up!" Chris shouted. "Get out, while I get out of this getup!" Chris physically lifted Caden and Dustin and hurled them from the room. He quickly changed into his Ra Yellow uniform. Snapping his duel disk to his room, he walked out into the hallway where Caden and Dustin where waiting. "Okay, now what did you want?" Chris asked, annoyed that Caden and Dustin where still snickering.

"We wanted to ask if you were going to the Mini-Tournament tonight." Caden said, stifling his snickering. "You know, they set up some Mini-Tournaments to help people get points."

Chris sighed. The school had decided to periodically set up so called Mini-tournaments to help students get points. "Yes, I remember. I wasn't planning on going, but I might as well go." Chris, Caden and Dustin left the Ra Yellow dorm. "So where is it being held again?" Chris asked.

"On the Main Dueling Arena." replied Dustin. The group walked in silence to the Main Dueling Arena where about seventeen where gathered in the stands. They had go up to a table where I Duel Academy Worker, where she typed their names into the laptop. They were then sent to wait in the stands. It seems that they were the last to sign up because five minutes later Professor Anthia walked out into the middle of the field with a microphone. Chris noticed that Anthia had washed out the hair dye so her hair was its natural color, brown, and she had cut it to about shoulder length.

"Attention students!" Anthia said into the microphone. "As you all know, the National Academy Championship is coming up some. This little Mini-Tournament is to help you get more points." Anthia pointed to the big screen that hung from the ceiling. "Now here is how this is going to work. Your names have been added into a computer randomizer. The computer will come up with two random names. Those people will duel, and then the process will repeat. Also Professors Toma, Ginsea, myself will be participating in this as well. But now lets get this started." The screen turned on and started making loud beeping noises. Then random letters started to fly across the screen. Then some of the letters started form words. "The first duelist is Caden Hama of Ra Yellow!" The crowd applauded, out of politeness, as Caden got up from his seat and went down to the Duel Arena. Anthia continued, "And the second duelist is Goro Ueda of Obelisk Blue!" A boy from the other side of the stands got up and walked down to the field. He was taller than Caden, but gangly. He had short dark brown hair, and dull brown eyes. The most noticeable feature of him was that some kind of badge was pinned to his chest. "Alright you two, lets start this duel!"

Caden and Goro took up positions on the Duel Field. Goro looked at Caden in distaste. "Man, I was hoping someone who was more of my level." Goro sighed as both he and Caden drew their hands. "I'll start us off." Goro said as he drew a card. "I summon Iron Chain Repairman in attack mode (1600/1200). Then I place one card and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Wreckeroid in attack mode (1800/1200). Wreckeroid will attack your Iron Chain Repairman!" Wreckeroid swung its wrecking ball at Iron Chain Repairman.

"I activate the trap card Soul Anchor!" Goro shouted. "Once activated, this card equips to my Iron Chain Repairman, making it indestructible in battle!"

"Um…well you still lose life points." Caden muttered as Goro's life points dropped from 4000-3800. "I finish my turn by placing two cards facedown."

Goro drew a card. "I summon Iron Chain Snake in attack mode (800/1200). Now I activate the effect of my Iron Chain Snake! During my main phase, I can equip it to a monster on the field. Then that monster loses 800 attack and defense points! So I equip my Iron Chain Snake to your Wreckeroid!" Iron Chain Snake wrapped itself around Wreckeroid and turned into a chain (1800-1000/1200-400). Now my Iron Chain Repairman will destroy your Wreckeroid!" Iron Chain Repairman jumped into the air and crushed Wreckeroid with its hammer, and Caden's life points dropped from 4000-3400. "Now my Iron Chain Repairman's nasty little effect activates!" smirked Goro. "When it destroys a monster, you lose 300 life points!" Caden's life points dropped to 3100. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Submarineroid in attack mode (800/1800)! Now I my Submarineroid will attack your life points directly!"

"Wait, what!?" shouted Goro as Submarineroid dropped its torpedo on the ground. The torpedo buried itself into the ground, and sped towards Goro, and exploded once it was under his feet. Goro's life points dropped from 4000-3200. "Hey! How were you able to do that!

"My Submarineroid's effect allows him to attack your life points directly." explained Caden. "Then my Submarineroid switches to defense mode at the end of the battle phase." Submarineroid switched itself to defense mode. "Next I activate my facedown trap Roid Production Line!" As the trap card flipped up, it started to glow brightly and a second Submarineroid appeared on the field. "You see, since my Submarineroid attacked your life points directly, this trap card allows me to summon a second copy of that card. And now my second Submarineroid will attack your life points directly!" Goro growled in frustration as the torpedo of the second Submarineroid dug into the ground and exploded under him (3200-2400). "I end my turn."

Goro drew a card. "I summon a second Iron Chain Snake in attack mode (800/1200). Now I think I'll equip it to your first Submarineroid!" Iron Chain Snake wrapped itself and Submarineroid (800-0/1800-1000). "Now my Iron Chain Repairman will destroy that Submarineroid!" Iron Chain Repairman jumped into the air and slammed its hammer down on Submarineroid, destroying it. "Now I hope you haven't forgotten Iron Chain Repairman's effect!" Iron Chain Repairman slammed its hammer into the ground and bolts of electricity shot from it and zapped Caden (3100-2800). "I think I'll end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I activate the effect of a monster in my hand called Missile Subroid (2000/3000). When Submarineroid is on the field, I can special summon this card!" A large submarine with two eyes on its bow appeared on the field. It was larger and more real looking than Submarineroid, and had several missiles with small eyes on them coming out of openings of the back of it. "Now I activate the effect of my Missile Subroid! It can destroy every card on your side of the field!" The missiles on Missile Subroid shot into the air and rained down on Goro's side of the field. "Since I activated my Missile Subroid's effect, I can't attack this turn. So I end my turn."

Goro drew a card. "I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Goro drew two cards. "I summon my Police Sniper in attack mode (1500/1300)." A man in a blue uniform, wearing a black vest and a black hat, holding a rifle appeared on the field.

"Wait," interjected Caden scratching the side of his head. "I thought you ran an Iron Chain deck."

Goro laughed. "No, I run more of a Law and Order deck. I thought that the Iron Chains were fitting for a deck like this. But enough small talk. I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I sacrifice my Submarineroid to summon Raceroid in attack mode (2000/0)." A dark red colored racecar with two eyes in the windshield and two arms coming out of the side doors appeared on the field. "Now I activate its effect. It can attack your life points directly!" Raceroid revved up for a moment and sped at top speed towards Goro. He barely got the time to yelp as Raceroid smashed into him. The force of the impact caused to go flying of the stage and land in the bleachers. Goro's life points dropped from 2400-400.

"THAT WAS UNFAIR!" shouted Goro at the top of his lungs as he climbed back onto the dueling field. "HOW IS THAT CARD LEGAL?!"

Caden shrugged. "I don't know, but I think it is because it is removed from play for three turns after it uses its effect. And when it comes back it has half of its original attack points." A hole appeared in front of Raceroid and Raceroid sped into it. "Moving on, I'll have Missile Subroid attack your Police Sniper."

"I activate my trap, Negate Attack!" shouted Goro. A swirling portal appeared in front of Police Sniper and the missiles flew into the portal.

"Why didn't you activate that when Raceroid attacked?" asked Caden.

"Because it happened so fast that I didn't get the chance to activate it!" Goro shouted. "Now just finish your turn."

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." said Caden.

Goro drew a card. "I activate the effect of my Police Sniper. If I discard a card from my hand, I can destroy one monster one the field." Goro discarded a card from his hand. Police Sniper took aim at Missile Subroid and fired two shots at it. The bullets imbedded themselves in Missile Subroid, and it shattered. "Next, I activate the spell card Tuner Revival which allows me to special summon one Tuner monster from my graveyard. So I special summon my Iron Chain Coil (1100/1600). And now, I summon a third Iron Chain Snake (800/1200). Now I tune my Iron Chain Coil and my Iron Chain Snake to synchro summon **Iron Chain Dragon **(2500/1300). Now my Police Sniper will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate my own Negate Attack!" shouted Caden, as Police Sniper's attack was negated.

"I end my turn." growled Goro in annoyance.

Caden drew a card. "I set one monster and place one card facedown. I end my turn."

Goro drew a card. "My Iron Chain Dragon will now destroy your facedown." Suddenly, the card flipped up, and rocketed up into the sky. Wait, what just happened?"

"My facedown card was Shuttleroid." explained Caden. "When it is targeted by an attack, it is removed from play."

"That doesn't help you!" laughed Goro. "Because my Iron Chain Dragon's attack turns into a direct attack!" Iron Chain Dragon roared as chains shot out of its body and hit Caden (2800-300).

"Now I activate my facedown trap Forced Fairness!" shouted Caden. "This trap card makes it so you only get one attack per turn."

"I end my turn." Goro growled.

Caden smiled as he drew a card. "Now my Shuttleroid (1000/1200) get special summoned to my field since it is my stand-by phase."

"Yeah, like there is anything you can do with it." scoffed Goro.

Caden smiled again. "Oh but there is. You see when it is special summoned like that; you get inflected with 1000 points of damage."

Suddenly, Goro became aware of a screeching sound. When he looked up, he saw two bombs fall straight towards him. "Oh crap." he said as the bombs hit him and exploded. Goro life points dropped from 400-0.

"And there you have it students." said Anthia. "Caden will move onto the next round. But lets give a hand to the gallant loser!" The other students applauded as Caden walked off the field, and as Goro stomped off the field in a huff.

* * *

Meanwhile, Adelie was out at the abandon dorm to check on Masaru's progress. She had just been about to open the door when she heard a muffled explosion, and saw purple smoke seeping out from under the door. She flung the door open and surveyed the room. Nothing seemed to be damaged, but the purple smoke hung in the air.

Masaru was picking himself off the floor. His face and upper chest were singed and covered in soot. He coughed as he tried to wave the smoke away. "I was trying to make a proponent of the one of your projects, my lady." he said as he noticed that Adelie was in the room. "But I think I let it heat up for too long."

Adelie made a simple wave of her hand and the purple smoke disappeared. "How is your progress of the projects?"

"Well, I have finished the first one." Masaru walked over to a safe in the rear of the room. He opened the safe and took out a small, green amulet. "Turns out this weren't as difficult as I first thought."

"Have you tested it?" Adelie asked.

"Yes I have." Masaru replied as he gestured to a corner of the room. There stood a cage. There were four people in the cage, three boys and a girl. They were huddled together, but none of them moved. The eyes were dull, as if something from them was gone. "It works just as you want it to my lady." Masaru then got on his knees and held the amulet up to Adelie. She took the amulet and put it around her neck.

"Now, how is the other project coming along?" she asked.

"I wish it was as successful as the first project my lady." Masaru said as he stood back up. "I've run into some problems with it my lady." Masaru walked over to a cylinder shaped machine. "I've been able to create a physical form, but I've been having trouble with everything else." He punched a few numbers into a small keyboard on the side of the machine. There was a low hissing noise, and a cylinder about the size of a coffin popped out of the machine. Adelie looked down into the cylinder to see a human body inside of it. But something was different about it.

"Is this what the final product will look like?" asked Adelie.

"No, of course not!" Masaru scoffed in indignation. "This is just a test subject." Adelie looked back down at the body. It was male, but it had short white, and its skin was grey.

"Well, when will this test subject be ready?" Adelie asked.

"Not for another 2 weeks or so." said Masaru as he pushed the cylinder back into the machine. "Not all of his internal organs are developed yet. So it might be longer than that maybe."

Adelie sighed as she looked down at the green amulet on her chest. "At least I can experiment with this for a while." Adelie turned to walk out of the room.

"If I may ask, my lady, why didn't you join that Mini-Tournament?" asked Masaru.

"Because I'm not trying to by in the National Academy Championship." replied Adelie. "I'm lying low for awhile until the time is right." Adelie walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

* * *

**Missile Subroid **

**Type: **monster/aqua/machine-effect

**Level: **7

**Stats: **(2000/3000)

**Effect: **This card can be special summoned if there is a face up 'Submarineroid' on your side of the field. If this is done, you can't normal summon, or special summon again this turn. During the main phase, destroy all cards on your opponent side of the field. If this is done, you can't conduct a battle phase this turn.

**Raceroid**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-effect

**Level: **5

**Stats: **(2000/0)

**Effect: **This card can attack your opponent's life points directly. If this is done, remove this card from play. On the three turn this was done, special summon this card. If this is done, its attack points are decreased by half.

**Roid Production Line**

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **several roids in a row at a factory

**Effect: **This card can be activated when a 'Roid' monster inflects 1000 points of damage or less to your opponent's life points. Special summon a 'Roid' monster from your deck with the same name of that 'Roid' monster.

**Forced Fairness **

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **Several large monsters being chained down, while smaller monsters charge towards them.

**Effect: **As long as this card is active, your opponent can only attack once per turn if there is at least one monster one your side of the field at the beginning of the battle phase.

**Police Sniper**

**Type: **monster/dark/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/1300)

**Effect: **Discard one card from your hand. Then destroy one monster on the field.

**Tuner Revival **

**Type: **quick spell

**Image: **a Junk Synchron, a Iron Chain Coil, a Hyper Synchron, and a Jutte Fighter rising from a cemetary.

**Effect: **Special summon one Tuner type monster from your graveyard.


	9. A MiniTournament Part 2

Anthia pointed back up to the television screen. "Now let us see whose dueling next!" Caden's and Goro's names were removed from the list and the names started to jumble themselves up. Then a name flew forward from the swirling mass of letters.

"The first duelist is Professor Ginsea!" Anthia shouted, as Professor Ginsea strode arrogantly forward onto the dueling field. Then a second name flew forward. "And his opponent will be Christopher Saigo!" Chris stood up and walked down to the dueling field. Caden and Dustin shouted words of confidence to him as he walked down, but were inaudible over the students clapping.

Professor Ginsea sneered down on Chris as he activated his duel disk. "Well Mr. Saigo, are you ready for defeat?" he smirked as he activated the duel vest that he had.

"You're a very bias teacher aren't you?" Chris asked. The students in the stands roared with laughter. Even Professors Toma and Anthia chuckled.

Professor Ginsea, on the other hand, was sieving with rage. "I'll make sure you spend a lot of time in detention for that Mr. Saigo. But until then, I'll start this duel." He drew a card. "I activate the field spell Geartown!" Professor Ginsea slapped a card into his duel vest, and a town with buildings shaped like gears appeared around them. "This field spell allows me to summon an Ancient Gear monster with one less tribute required. So I summon Ancient Gear Beast in attack mode (2000/2000). I then place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magician of Pain in attack mode (1400/1900). I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Professor Ginsea drew a card. "I summon Ancient Gear Soldier in attack mode (1300/1300). Now my Ancient Gear Beast will attack Magician of Pain! And don't try to activate any spell or trap cards! When most Ancient Gear monsters attack, you can't activate spell or traps." Ancient Gear Beast ran forward and jumped on Magician of Pain. It lowered its head and bit Magician of Pain's head off. Chris's life points dropped from 4000-3600.

"I activate Call of the Haunted!" shouted Chris. "I can activate this now, so I bring Magician of Pain back to the field in defense mode."

"I end my turn." Professor Ginsea growled.

Chris drew a card. "I activate the spell card Magical Dimension! First off, this card will destroy your Ancient Gear Beast!" Ancient Gear Beast shattered. "Now I sacrifice my Magician of Pain to special summon my Dark Magician in attack mode (2500/2100). Now Dark Magician will destroy your Ancient Gear Soldier!"

"I activate the trap Gears of Vengeance!" Professor Ginsea shouted as Ancient Gear Soldier was destroyed and his life points dropped from 4000-2800. "Now every monster that destroys an Ancient Gear monster gets a gear token." A small grey gear appeared attached to Dark Magician. "Now every monster with a gear token can't attack."

"I set a monster facedown." muttered Chris. "I end my turn."

Professor Ginsea drew a card. "I summon Ancient Gear Phoenix in attack mode (900/900)." A small mechanical bird made completely of gears appeared on the field. "Now I activate the effect of my Ancient Gear Phoenix. He is allowed to attack your life points directly!" A bird screeched and flew into the air. It then dive bombed Chris, slamming into him. His life points dropped from 3600-2700. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I flip up my facedown monster, Star Witch (1700/1300). Now she will destroy your Ancient Gear Phoenix!"

"I activate my facedown, Limiter Remover!" shouted Professor Ginsea. "This will double my monster's attack points! (900-1800)" Star Witch's attack bounced off Ancient Gear Phoenix, and it destroyed Star Witch by blowing it away. Chris's life points dropped from 2700-2500. "One more thing I should add, my Ancient Gear Phoenix is destroyed by spell cards so it won't be destroyed by Limiter Removal."

"Well I activate the effect of my Star Witch." Chris said as he took two cards from his deck. "It allows me to take two spell cards from my deck. I end my turn."

Professor Ginsea drew a card. "I summon a second Ancient Gear Phoenix to the field (900/900). Now they both will attack your life points directly!" The Ancient Gear Phoenixes flew into the air and slammed into Chris simultaneously. His life points dropped from 2500-700. "I think I'll end it at that."

Chris drew a card. "I sacrifice my Dark Magician to summon **Dark Eradicator Warlock **(2500/2100). Now my Dark Eradicator Warlock will destroy one of your Ancient Gear Phoenixes." Dark Eradicator Warlock pointed its staff at one of the Ancient Gear Phoenixes. Dark bolts of lightning fired from the staff and destroyed the Ancient Gear Phoenix, and Professor Ginsea's life points dropped from 2800-1200. Then a gear appeared on Dark Eradicator Warlock.

"What was the point of that?" laughed Professor Ginsea. "Now your Dark Eradicator Warlock can't attack. I also still have one more Ancient Gear Phoenix which can wipe out your life points!"

"Simple. Whenever Dark Eradicator Warlock is on the field and anyone activates a spell card, you get hit with 1000 points of damage." Chris said. "So first, I activate the spell Pot of Greed which allows me to draw two cards." Chris drew two cards. A dark aura appeared around Professor Ginsea and his life points dropped from 1200-200. "Now I activate the spell card Black Pendent and equip it to Dark Eradicator Warlock (2500-3000/2100)." Then Professor Ginsea's life points dropped to 0. The students roared with laughter as Professor Ginsea ran from the dueling field and away from the auditorium.

"Students that is enough." Anthia gestured with her hands and the students stop laughing. "Now let see who is up next." The screen came to life again, and the random mass of words appeared again. Then a name flew forward. "The first duelist is Dai Kubo!" A very nervous looking Slifer Red boy walked down to the dueling field. Then a second name flew forward. "And his opponent will be Faron Egawa!"

Faron, who was sitting higher up in the stands, jumped up with glee. "Yes!" He turned to Edon and Myrine who he was sitting with. "Now you will see my power!"

"Come to think of it, I've never seen you duel." Edon commented.

"Well now will you see me aaaahhhh!" Faron, who had not been paying any attention to what he was doing, had tripped and was now falling down the stands.

"Idiot." Myrine muttered.

The students were roaring with laughter as Faron fell down the stands and as he smack into the ground. He slowly stood up. "I'm okay!" He shouted. He then climbed into the Dueling Field.

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked Anthia.

Faron clammily pulled out a pair of sunglasses and placed then on his face. "Yes I'm fine Professor Saigo. So lets get this duel started."

"I'll start us off then." Dai said as he drew a card. "I summon Wolf Axwielder in attack mode (1650/1000). I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Faron drew a card. "I summon a monster known as Psychic Armor Head in attack mode (0/500)." Suddenly a helmet appeared on Faron's head. "I finish off by place one card facedown and end my turn."

Dai drew a card. "I summon Speed Jaguar in attack mode (1000/800). Now my Wolf Axwielder will attack your Psychic Armor Head!"

"Nope, because I activate Negate Attack." Faron said as his trap card flipped up. Wolf Axwielder's attack was stopped.

"I end my turn." Dai finished.

"I activate the effect of my Psychic Armor Head." Faron said as he took a card from his deck. "Instead of drawing a card, I can take one armor type monster from my deck. So now I sacrifice my Psychic Armor Head to summon my Doublecross Armor in attack mode (0/0). I then place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Dai drew a card. "I sacrifice my Speed Jaguar to summon Manticore of Darkness in attack mode (2300/1000). Now my Manticore of Darkness will destroy your Doublecross Armor!" Manticore of Darkness flew towards Doublecross Armor, but Doublecross Armor punched it, causing Manticore of Darkness to shatter. Then it ran up towards Dai and kicked him in the stomach, the force of which knocked him over. His life points dropped from 4000-2850. Doublecross Armor then shattered. "What just happened?" Dai asked as he got up.

"That was the effect of my Doublecross Armor." Faron said. "When it is attacked, the attacking monster is destroyed and you get hit with half of that monster's attack points."

"Well, now my Wolf Axwielder will attack your life points directly!" Dai shouted as Wolf Axwielder charged towards Faron.

"No, because I activate a trap card known as Magnet Armor." Faron shouted as his trap card flipped up. "This allows me to special summon my Doublecross Armor to the field." Doublecross Armor appeared right in front of Faron just before Wolf Axwielder struck. Its ax hit Doublecross Armor instead, which then punched Wolf Axwielder in the head which destroyed it. Doublecross Armor ran over to Dai again and kicked him in the stomach again. His life points dropped from 2850-2025.

"I activate the effect of my Manticore of Darkness!" shouted Dai. "During the end phase of this turn, I can remove a beast-warrior or winged-beast card from my hand to the graveyard to special Manticore of Darkness from the graveyard. I end at that."

Faron drew a card. "I summon a second Psychic Armor Head to the field (0/500). Next I activate the spell card Armor Gravitation! Since I have Psychic Armor Head on the field, I can special summon up to four armor type monsters from my deck. So now I special summon Big Bang Blow (0/0), Over Boost (0/1000), Jet Gun Turret (0/1500), and Active Guard (0/2500)." As the pieces of armor appeared, they equipped themselves to Faron, who was now completely covered in armor.

"Why summon all those monsters with 0 attack points?" Dai asked, confused.

"I actually one need one, which is this." Faron held up his right arm with had Big Bang Blow. "You see if I Big Bang Blow is destroyed as a result of battle, all monsters on the field are destroyed and the owners of the destroyed monsters lose life points equal to the combined amount of the monsters attack points. Since all of my monsters have 0 attack points, I'll only lose 2300 because of the attack, but you will also lose 2300 which is more than you have. So I attack your Manticore of Darkness with Big Bang Blow!" Faron himself jumped into the air and came down on Manticore of Darkness, punching it with Big Bang Blow. Big Bang Blow shattered as he jumped away from Manticore of Darkness as his life points dropped from 4000-1700. Then all of the monsters shattered and Dai's life points dropped to 0. The students applauded as Faron and Dai moved off the dueling field.

"Well that's interesting. An armor deck." Chris commented. "You don't see many of those around."

"Why?" asked Dustin.

"Because most people don't like how most of the armor monsters have 0 attack points." replied Chris. Chris stopped talking as Anthia moved back onto the dueling field to announce the next duel.

* * *

**Ancient Gear Phoenix**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(900/900)

**Effect: **This card can attack your opponent's life points directly. This card can't be destroyed by a spell card.

**Gears of Vengeance**

**Image: **A monster being weighed down by several gears.

**Type: **continuous trap

**Effect: **When a monster destroys a Ancient Gear monster, place one gear token on it. Any monsters with gear tokens on it can't attack.

* * *

Sorry for the usually short chapter.


	10. A MiniTournament Part 3

"Now lets move onto the next round!" Anthia said as the screen came to life again. Dai's and Faron's names were removed from the mass, and the words started to scramble again. Soon a name flew forward. "The first duelist is Trevor Gasina!" Chris looked over as the Obelisk Blue he had met earlier jumped from his seat and walked down to the dueling field. Several Obelisk Blues glared at him as he went.

"Not very popular, is he." Chris commented.

"Yeah." replied Caden. "Most Obelisk Blues won't even recognize him as the schools Kaiser. They don't like how he is willing to make friends with Ra Yellows and Slifer Reds." By now, Trevor was on the dueling field. A second name was forming on the screen.

"And his opponent will be Kei Banno!" A second Obelisk Blue boy stood up and walked down to the dueling field. He looked to be the same high as Trevor; he also had black hair that he let hang shoulder length. He was also very handsome. He got a greater response than Trevor. All of the Obelisk blues cheered and yelled encouragements to him, while the Obelisk Blue girls squealed in excitement like a group of fan girls.

The two faced each other down. "I hope you're ready to lose your title as Kaiser." Kei sneered. "If one could even call you that, because I certainly don't."

Trevor laughed. "Really, you people need to stop whining about me being Kaiser. Just face the facts that ever since I became the Kaiser, I've never been beaten." He said it calmly, without any arrogance. He spoke like a person who was politely trying to prove a point.

"Whatever." Kei shouted as they both activated their duel disks. Kei drew a card from his deck. "I think I'll start us off by summoned Goblin Knight (1200/1300)." An ugly goblin in a set of black, rusty armor appeared on the field. "I then place one card facedown and end my turn."

Trevor drew a card. "I summon Blade Horn Dragon in attack mode (1700/1400). Now my Blade Horn Dragon will attack your Goblin Knight!" Blade Dragon flew forward and used its blade like horn to slice Goblin Knight in half. Kei's life points dropped from 4000-3500.

"The effect of my Goblin Knight now activates!" Kei shouted. "When it is destroyed as a result of battle, the monster that destroyed it loses 500 attack points until the end of my next turn (1700-1200)."

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." Trevor finished.

Kei drew a card. "I summon Dark Blaster Gargoyle in attack mode (1000/1000)." A large gargoyle with two large cannons mounted on its shoulders and holding two large cannons appeared on the field. "Now my Dark Blaster Gargoyle will attack your Blade Horn Dragon!" Dark Blaster Gargoyle aimed all four of its cannons at Blade Horn Dragon and fired them; destroying Blade Horn Dragon.

"Care to explain why that happened?" Trevor asked calmly.

"Once per turn, Dark Blaster Gargoyle can destroy one monster in battle without being destroyed or damage being inflected." Kei explained. "Next I activate the trap card Fiendish Compensation! Since my fiend monster destroyed a monster, this trap allows me to special summon a fiend type monster with less attack points from my hand. So I summon Goblin King in attack mode (0-1000/0-1000). Normally you would gain life points equal to my Goblin King's attack points, but since it's original attack power is 0 you don't gain any life points. Anyway, my Goblin King will now attack your life points directly!" Goblin King ran forward and struck Trevor across the chest, and his life points dropped from 4000-3000. "I end my turn."

Trevor drew a card. "I summon Red Moon Dragon in attack mode (1800/1600). Now my Red Moon Dragon will attack your Dark Blaster Gargoyle!" Red Moon Dragon shot a ball of crimson fire at Dark Blaster Gargoyle.

"I activate the trap card Fiend's Immortality!" shouted Kei. "This card will keep my monster from being destroyed." Red Moon Dragon's attack hit Dark Blaster Gargoyle, but it wasn't destroyed. Kei's life points dropped from 4000-3200.

"I finish my turn by placing two cards facedown." Trevor finished.

Kei drew a card. "I summon Gil Garth in attack mode (1800/1200)." Goblin King's attack points rose from 1000-2000. "Now my Goblin King will destroy your Red Moon Dragon!" Goblin King ran forward and destroyed Red Moon Dragon. Trevor's life points dropped from 3000-2800. "Now Gil Garth will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate the trap Call of the Haunted, which I will use to bring back Red Moon Dragon." Red Moon Dragon reappeared in front of Trevor. It took Gil Garth's attack, and both monsters were destroyed.

"Now my Dark Blaster Gargoyle will attack your life points directly!" Kei shouted.

"Now I activate my trap Draining Shield!" shouted Trevor. A shield appeared around Trevor as Dark Blaster Gargoyle hit. Trevor's life points rose to 3800.

"I end my turn." muttered Kei.

Trevor drew a card. "I summon Sonic Dragon in attack mode (1600/600)." A light green dragon appeared on the field. Its body was short, thin, and streamlined. "Now my Sonic Dragon will attack your Goblin King!" Kei laughed as Sonic Dragon blasted towards Goblin King, but stopped dead when Sonic Dragon destroyed Goblin King. Kei's life points dropped from 3200-1600.

There were cries of shock from the crowd, especially the Obelisk Blues. "What just happened?!" Kei shouted. "My Goblin King had 2000 attack points!"

"Well actually, no." Trevor replied. "Apparently you weren't aware of my Red Moon Dragon's effect. When it is destroyed, one monster loses 1000 attack points. And since Red Moon Dragon was destroyed twice, its effect was activated twice. This in turn reduced Goblin King's attack points to 0."

"Great…." Kei muttered. "Just end your turn."

Trevor smiled. "I'm not done yet. You see, my Sonic Dragon has an effect. It is allowed to attack twice in one battle phase. So now my Sonic Dragon will attack your Dark Blaster Gargoyle!" Sonic Dragon blasted again towards Dark Blaster Gargoyle, destroying it. Kei's life points dropped from 1600-1000.

"Are you done yet?" growled Kei.

"No. I activate the spell card known as Dragon's Spell of Vengeance!" Trevor shouted. "For every Dragon card I remove from my graveyard, 500 points of damage will be dealt to you." Kei shouted as the spirits of Blade Horn Dragon, and Red Moon Dragon appeared and slammed into him. Kei's life points dropped to 0. The Reds and Yellows cheered, but the Obelisk Blues either booed or remained silent.

"Man, that's sort of depressing." Trevor muttered to himself as he glanced at the Obelisk Blues. He walked back to his seat and sat down. Alexandra was sitting beside him. "You'd think they'd give me a little support."

Alexandra giggled. "What did you expect?" she asked. Her face fell as she glanced over at the Obelisk Blues. "They are all just spoiled rich kids." She looked like she was about to cry, but she smiled weakly at Trevor. Trevor put his arm around her shoulders.

"You still haven't gotten over Oliver's death, have you?" Trevor asked kindly. Alexandra looked like she was about to cry again. She nodded. "It's okay to feel sad about it, but you need to move on. I'm not saying you need to forget about him, but he wouldn't thank you for mobbing about him all the time and ruin your life." Alexandra looked at Trevor and was about to say something, but was interrupted by Anthia.

"Now lets move onto the next duel!" Anthia shouted as the screen came back to life. Trevor's and Kei's names were removed from the mass of words. Then the mass of words scrambled again. Then a name flew forward. "The first duelist is Professor Toma!" Professor Toma moved onto the the dueling field. The mass of words scrambled again. Then another name flew forward. "His opponent will be Hideo Kawada!" A Ra Yellow boy stood up and walked down to the dueling field. He stood across from Professor Toma.

"I think I will start us off." Professor Toma. He drew a card. "I summon Kuriboh Swordsman in attack mode (1500/600)." The appearance of the sword wielding Kuriboh got a few cries of affection from the other students. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Hideo drew a card. "I summon Medium Piece Golem in attack mode (1600/0). Now my Medium Piece Golem will destroy you Kuriboh Swordsman!" Medium Piece Golem charged forward and crushed Kuriboh Swordsman.

"The effect of my Kuriboh Swordsman activates." Professor Toma said. "When it is destroyed, all battle damage is negated.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." Hideo finished.

Professor Toma drew a card. "I summon Kuriboh Cannon Unit in attack mode (1900/300). Now my Kuriboh Cannon Unit will attack your Medium Piece Golem!"

"I activate the trap, Defense Draw!" Hideo shouted. "During the damage step, the damage gets negated and I draw a card." Medium Piece Golem was destroyed, and Hideo drew a card.

"I activate the spell card Kuriboh Rebirth!" Professor Toma shouted. "This card will special summon one Kuriboh monster from my graveyard in defense mode." Kuriboh Swordsman appeared on the field in defense mode. "Now I end my turn."

Hideo drew a card. "I set one monster in defense mode. I end my turn."

Professor Toma drew a card. "I summon Robotic Kuriboh (900/500). Now my Kuriboh Cannon Unit will attack your facedown monster." Kuriboh Cannon Unit fired its cannons at the facedown. The monster flipped up, but remained unscratched.

"The monster you've attacked was my Shell knight which has 2000 defense points." Hideo said as Professor Toma's life points dropped from 4000-3900. "Now the effect of my Shell Knight effect activates. When he is summoned, in this case flipped summoned, he inflects 500 points of damage." Two cone shaped stones fired from Shell Knight's shoulders, and slammed into Professor Toma. His life points dropped from 3900-3400.

"I activate the effect of my Robotic Kuriboh." Professor Toma said calmly. "He is allowed to attack your life points directly." Robotic Kuriboh blasted into the air, across Shell Knight, and slammed into Hideo. His life points dropped from 4000-3100. "I end my turn."

Hideo drew a card. "I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Professor Toma drew a card. "I summon Giant Kuriboh in attack mode (2000/200). Now my Giant Kuriboh will attack your facedown." Giant Kuriboh jumped into the air and landed on the facedown monster. It was destroyed.

"The monster you destroyed was Mine Golem." Hideo said. "When it is destroyed, you lose 500 life points." Professor Toma's life points dropped from 3400-2900.

"Now my Robotic Kuriboh will attack your life points directly." Professor Toma said. The Robotic Kuriboh slammed into Hideo. His life points dropped from 3100-2200. "I end my turn."

Hideo drew a card. "I set one monster facedown. Next, I activate the spell card Falling Rocks! This will destroy one monster, so I destroy you Robotic Kuriboh." Several rocks appeared above Robotic Kuriboh, and they fell on Robotic Kuriboh. "I end my turn."

Professor Toma drew a card. "I remove my Giant Kuriboh to special summon my Titan Kuriboh in attack mode (4000/3000)." The students sitting behind Professor Toma yelled and scampered out of the way as the Titan Kuriboh hologram appeared in the stands. "Now I sacrifice my Kuriboh Swordsman to summon Kuriboh King (?-3000/?-3000). Next I activate the spell Heavy Storm, which will destroy all spell and trap cards on the field." A large storm appeared and all of the spell and trap cards were sucked into the storm. "Now I activate the spell card Dark Core which removes your Shell Knight from play. Now my Kuriboh Cannon Unit will attack your facedown!" Kuriboh destroyed the facedown, which was revealed to be a Small Piece Golem. "Now my Titan Kuriboh will attack your life points directly!" Titan Kuriboh ran towards Hideo and jumped on top of him, knocking him down. His life points dropped to 0.

"The winner is Professor Toma." Anthia shouted. The students politely applauded as Professor Toma walked over to Hideo to help him up.

* * *

**Trevor's Cards**

**Sonic Dragon **

**Type: **monster/wind/dragon-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/600)

**Effect: **This card can attack twice during the battle phase.

**Dragon's Spell of Vengeance**

**Image: **the spirits of dragons destroying a city.

**Type: **normal spell

**Effect: **Remove a maximum of 4 dragon type monsters from your graveyard from play. Inflect 500 points of damage to your opponent for effect one removed.

**Kei's Cards**

**Goblin Knight **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1200/1300)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, the monster that destroyed it loses 500 attack points.

**Dark Blaster Gargoyle **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **When this card attacks an opponent's monster, this card is not destroyed. Destroy the targeted monster, and negate all battle damage.

**Fiendish Compensation**

**Image: **a fiend handing a man money while a larger fiend appears in the background.

**Type: **trap

**Effect: **This card can only be activated if a fiend type monster destroys another monster. Special summon one fiend type monster with less attack points than the original fiend monster. Then your opponent's life points increase by the fiend monster's original attack points.

**Fiend Immortality **

**Image: **a fiend, with a black arua around it, being shot, hit, crushed, and sliced with blades.

**Type: **trap

**Effect: **Once per turn, one fiend type monster can be destroyed as a result of battle until the end of the turn this card is activated.

**Professor Toma's Cards**

**Kuriboh Rebirth **

**Image: **a kuriboh with the sword thing from Monster Reborn behind it.

**Type: **quick spell

**Effect: **Special summon one monster with 'Kuriboh' in its name in face up defense mode on your side of the field.

**Hideo's Cards**

**Falling Rocks**

**Image: **several rocks falling on a man.

**Type: **normal spell

**Effect: **Destroy one non rock type monster on the field.


	11. A MiniTournament Part 4

"Now that the first half of our duelists has dueled, this tournament could get more exciting!" Anthia said as the T.V. screen came to life. "Now lets see who will duel next!" The names jumbled up again. Soon a name came forward. "The first duelist is Maki Honjo!" An Obelisk Blue female stood up and walked onto the field. She was of average height and build. She had blonde hair that was tied up in a bun. On the screen, a second name flew forward. "And her opponent will be me!" Anthia said in delight as her name appeared on the screen.

Up in the stands, Caden leaned over to Chris. "Hey Chris, what kind of deck does your sister use anyway?"

"An Angel Deck." Chris replied.

"You mean like a fairy deck?" asked Caden.

Chris smiled knowingly. "You'll see." Maki and Anthia were already on the dueling field with duel disks activated. Both had customized their duel disk. Maki's was colored a bright pink, while Anthia's was white and had a pattern on it that made it look like it was made of feathers.

"I think I'll start us off if you don't mind." Maki said as she drew a card. "I summon Deceptive Kitty in attack mode (600/300)." A small, pink kitten appeared in front of Maki. A few cries of affection came from the girl students in the crowd. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Shinning Angel in attack mode (1400/800). Now my Shinning Angel will attack your Kitten!" Shinning Angel flew forward towards Deceptive Kitty. Before Shinning Angel struck, Deceptive Kitty jumped onto Shinning Angel's head and started clawing his head.

"In case you're wondering, that is my Deceptive Kitty's effect." Maki said. "It can negate one attack aimed at it once per turn." Deceptive Kitty jumped off of Shinning Angel's bleeding head and licked its paws. Shinning Angel returned to Anthia's side of the field, holding its bloody head.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." Anthia finished.

Maki drew a card. "I summon Winged Panther in attack mode (1600/1200)." A panther with two large wings coming out of its back appeared on the field. "Now my Winged Panther will attack your Shinning Angel!" Winged Panther flew forward and slammed into Shinning Angel, and then it shred Shinning Angel to pieces with its claws. Anthia's life points dropped from 4000-3800.

"I activate the effect of Shinning Angel." Anthia said coolly. "It allows me to special summon Archer Girl of the Clouds (1200/1900)." A small cloud with a teenage girl standing on it appeared in front of Anthia. The girl was dressed in a white toga and a small helmet. She was holding a long, brown bow, and had a pair of long, white wings.

"Dang." Mika pouted. "I think I'll end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "Now the effect of my Archer Girl of the Clouds activates. At the start of my main phase, I have to declare a monster type. Then the strongest monster of that type on the field on either side is destroyed. So I declare beast type." Archer Girl of the Clouds lowered its bow at Deceptive Kitty and fired at it. The arrow shot through its head and Deceptive Kitty shattered. Anthia sighed. "I was hoping it would destroy Winged Panther."

"That's because Winged Panther is a winged-beast type, Professor." Maki commented.

Anthia chuckled. "All well, I summon Angelic Knight-Alexander in attack mode (1700/1400)." A man wearing a suit of armor appeared on the field. He was holding a large sword and a pair of wings come out of his back. "Now my Angelic Knight-Alexander will attack your Winged Panther!" Angelic Knight-Alexander flew into the air, and came down blade first onto Winged Panther, destroying it. Maki's life points dropped from 4000-3900. "Now my Archer Girl of the Clouds will attack your life points directly!" Archer Girl of the Clouds lowered its bow at Maki, and fired an arrow at her. Maki's life points dropped from 3900-2700. "I end my turn."

Maki drew a card. "I summon Black Spirit Jaguar in attack mode (1900/0)." A large jaguar appeared on the field. It was very bulky and a dark aura appeared around it. "Black Spirit Jaguar will destroy your Angelic Knight-Alexander." Black Spirit Jaguar ran forward and sliced Angelic Knight-Alexander to ribbons. Anthia's life points dropped from 3800-3600. "My Black Spirit Jaguar has a rather interesting effect. If it is the only monster on my field, it can attack twice! So now my Black Spirit Jaguar will attack your Archer Girl of the Clouds!" Black Spirit Jaguar ran towards Archer Girl of the Clouds and sliced it up with its claws. Anthia's life points dropped from 3600-2900. "I think I'll end my turn at that."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Musical Angel in attack mode (1500/1700)." A female angel holding a large, golden harp appeared on the field. "Next, I activate the facedown trap The Light of the Holy! This trap card allows me to special summon a fairy type monster in face up defense position. So I special summon Command Angel in defense mode (1200/1900). Now my Command Angel has an effect of her own. She gives all fairy type monsters a 400 attack point boost (Musical Angel 1500-1900, Command Angel 1200-1600). Now for the effect of my Musical Angel!" Suddenly, Musical Angel began to sing and play her harp. "You see, she can change to battle positions of every monster on the field, except herself of course." As Musical Angel sang and played, Command Angel stood up and Black Spirit Jaguar moved into a sitting position. "Now Command Angel will destroy your Black Spirit Jaguar!" Command Angel flew into the air and slammed down and Black Spirit Jaguar, destroying it. "Now my Musical Angel will attack your life points directly!" Musical Angel flew over to Maki and smacked her with her harp. Maki's life points dropped from 2700-800. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Maki drew a card. She sighed. She placed her hand on the top of her deck. "I surrender. I haven't anything that can help me." The crowd groaned in disappointment. The television screen came to life as Maki and Anthia left the dueling field.

Anthia picked up her microphone. "Alright, now lets see how will duel next!" Maki's names and Anthia's names removed them themselves and the remaining names jumbled up again. Then a name flew forward. "The first duelist is Dustin Seo!" Dustin got up. Chris and Caden muttered encouragements to him as he walked down to the dueling field.

"Now lets see who is opponent will be!" Anthia shouted as the words jumbled up again. Then a second name flew forward. "His opponent will be Teruo Endo!" A Ra Yellow boy with sandy brown hair stood up and walked down to the dueling field. They both took up positions apart from each other.

"I'll start us off." Teruo said as he drew a card. "I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Dustin drew a card. "I summon Super Sonic Jeter in attack mode (1400/1200)." A small, swept winged aircraft appeared on the field. "Now my Super Sonic Jeter will attack your facedown monster!" Several missiles launched from Super Sonic Jeter and slammed into the facedown monster. Suddenly, flames appeared around Dustin and his life points dropped from 4000-3500.

"In case your wondering, that was the effect of my Jester of Flames." said Teruo as a clown wearing flame patterned clothes and red paint appeared behind Teruo. It soon disappeared. "When it is flipped, you lose 500 life points."

Dustin sighed. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Teruo drew a card. "I summon Jester Lord in attack mode (?/?). I'll let you in on an interesting fact about my Jester Lord. If it is the only monster on the field, it gains 1000 attack points for every spell and trap on the field (0-1000/0)."

"You seem to forget that your Jester Lord is not the only monster on the field." Dustin said.

"True, which is why I activate the effect of a monster in my hand, which allows me to special summon my Jester Confit to the field (0/0). Which in turn activates its second effect, I can return this card and one of your cards." Suddenly, Jester Confit and Super Sonic Jeter disappeared in cloud of smoke. "Now I set two cards facedown (1000-4000/0). Now my Jester Lord will attack you directly!" Four flaming balls appeared in Jester Lord's hands, and he threw them at Dustin.

"I activate my facedown trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" shouted Dustin. A scarecrow made of iron appeared in front of Dustin and blocked Jester Lord's attack. "It then gets placed facedown again."

"I end my turn." said Teruo. Dustin drew a card. Suddenly, there was a loud screech and Super Sonic Jeter reappeared on the field. "What the!" shouted Teruo as Jester Lord's attack points dropped to 0.

"That was the effect of my Super Sonic Jeter." Dustin explained. "When it is removed from the field, it returns during my main phase. But now I summon my Speed Gear in attack mode (200/300)." A large gear with two rockets bolted to it appeared on the field. "Now I tune Speed Gear and Super Sonic Jeter to synchro summon Hyper Speed Samurai in attack mode (2000/1600)." A samurai with several rockets strapped to his body appeared on the field. "Now my Hyper Speed Samurai will destroy your Jester Lord." The rockets on Hyper Speed Samurai fired and it sped towards Jester Lord.

"I activate my facedown trap Negate Attack!" shouted Teruo. "This stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

"Unfortunately for you, the effect of my Hyper Speed Samurai activates." Dustin said. "When it attacks, it is unaffected by spell or traps." Hyper Speed Samurai sped through the Negate Attack and sliced Jester Lord in half. Teruo' life points dropped from 4000-2000. "Remember the Speed Gear that I used to synchro summon Hyper Speed Samurai?" asked Dustin. Teruo nodded. "Its effect now activates. For one turn, the synchro monster that was summoned by it is allowed to attack twice!"

"Oh crap." Teruo muttered.

"Hyper Speed Samurai attack Teruo directly and win the duel!" shouted Dustin. Hyper Speed Samurai sped forward and cut Teruo with its sword. Teruo's life points dropped from 2000-0.

"The winner is Dustin Seo!" Anthia said as the rest of the students politely applauded.

* * *

While this had been going on, a duel was taking place deep in the forest. The hapless Obelisk Blue who had been challenged had agreed to duel so far into the forest because he thought it would be an easy victory. But now, he stared in horror at his empty field and his empty hand. The worse thing was that it was his opponent's turn. His opponent drew a card and slapped a card onto their duel disk. A large tentacle thing appeared on the field. He could see it properly because shadows had surrounded his opponent during the entire duel.

"Attack." his opponent said. The tentacle thing jumped into the air and wrapped itself around the Obelisk Blue. He managed to scream before the thing exploded. The explosion threw him against a tree and he lost consciousness. The other person walked towards the limp body. The shadows that been surrounding the person disappeared. The person was Adelie. She smirked as the amulet that Masaru had made began to glow. As the amulet glowed, a small ball of bright energy came out of the Obelisk Blue and was absorbed into the amulet. She turned and walked away from the body, still smirking.

* * *

**Anthia's Cards**

**Archer Girl of the Clouds**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1200/1900)

**Effect: **During your main phase, name one monster type. Destroy the monster on the field of that type that has highest attack points.

**Angelic Knight-Alexander **

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1400)

**Effect: **This card gains 100 attack points each time a fairy type monster is removed from the field.

**Musical Angel **

**Type: **monster/light/fairy-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/1700)

**Effect: **Once per turn, change the battle positions of all monster on the field (Except this card).

**Light of the Holy**

**Image: **Several people in a beam of light coming from the sky.

**Type: **normal trap

**Effect: **This card can only be activated during your turn. Special summon one level 4 fairy type monster in faceup defense mode.

**Maki's Cards**

**Deceptive Kitty**

**Type: **monster/earth/beast-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(600/300)

**Effect: **Once per turn, negate one attack aimed at this monster.

**Winged Panther**

**Type: **monster/wind/winged-beast-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/1200)

**Effect: **This card can't be destroyed by trap cards.

**Black Spirit Jaguar **

**Type: **monster/dark/beast-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1900/0)

**Effect: **If this card is the only card one your field, it can attack twice.

**Dustin's Cards**

**Super Sonic Jeter**

**Type: **monster/wind/machine-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/1200)

**Effect: **This card is removed from the field by monster effect, spell, or trap, special summon it to your field during your main phase.

**Speed Gears**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-tuner

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(200/300)

**Effect: **When this card is used in a synchro summoning, the synchro monster would be able to attack twice during the battle phase until the end of that turn.

**Hyper Speed Samurai **

**Type: **monster/wind/warrior-synchro

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2000/1600)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster] + [1 or more none tuner monsters]. When this card attacks, your opponent can't activate any spell or trap cards.

**Teruo's Cards**

**Jester of Flames**

**Type: **monster/pyro/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(800/1100)

**Effect: **[flip] inflect 500 points of damage to your opponent.


	12. A MiniTournament Part 5

Happy Memorial Day

* * *

"Dang it, this is horrifyingly boring!" Faron whined as Anthia started to announce the next two duelists. "Seriously, all of these people are lame!" Suddenly, Edon's fist came down on Faron's head with enough force to cause him to tumble into the next row. Faron stumbled to his feet. "What was that for!" he shouted.

"Will you quit your whining?" Edon growled. "That's the thing about tournaments. You have to do a lot of waiting. If you can't wait until your next turn, than you shouldn't be here."

Suddenly Myrine got up from her seat and started walking down to the dueling field. "Hey, where are you going?" he asked. Edon grabbed a hold of Faron's head and pointed to the television screen which had 'Myrine Yonai'. "Oh," With a loud _pop_, Faron disappeared and reappeared next to Edon. "By the way, why is Myrine so gothic?" he asked.

Edon sighed. "Geeze, you sure do know when to ask a random question, and that is not a complement." Edon put his hand over his head. "But to answer your question, it is because she was a guinea pig of sorts. You see, Myrine was the first person that Adelie used her powers on. The problem is that it completely messed up her personality and made her like she is now. Another effect was that she is totally obedient to Adelie, but she is aware of want she is doing. That is a problem for Myrine because she never wanted Adelie to be using her powers on her to begin with."

"Well that explains a lot." Faron mused as Myrine's opponent was announced. It was a Ra Yellow girl named Aya Kudo. "I wonder what kind of cards she uses."

"Isn't it obvious?" Edon asked, staring at Faron. Faron shook his head. Edon sighed in exasperation. "Faron, why don't you do a favor to mankind and jump off a cliff?"

By now, Myrine and Aya had taken their positions on the dueling field. Aya studied Myrine intently. She sniffed in disapproval. "Do you think you have enough black?" she asked. About the only non-black things on Myrine that could be black were her Obelisk Blue coat and the cards in her black duel disk.

"Shut up." Myrine said coldly.

"Whatever, but lets get this duel started." Aya said as she drew a card. "I start us of by summoning Harpie Lady 3 in attack mode (1300/1400). Next, I play the field spell Harpies' Hunting Ground. This will give all winged beast monster 200 attack and defense points (1300-1500/1400-1600). I finish my turn by placing one card facedown."

Myrine drew a card. "I summon Despair Marionette in attack mode (0/0)." A white marionette with a look of despair painted on its head appeared on the field. Cut strings hung loosely from parts of its body. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Aya drew a card. "I summon Harpie Lady 2 in attack mode (1300-1500/1400-1600). This activates the other effect of my Harpies' Hunting Ground. When a "Harpie Lady" is normal or special summoned, I can destroy one spell or trap card. So say good-bye to your facedown card." Myrine's facedown card was destroyed. "Now my Harpie Lady 2 will attack your Despair Marionette!" Harpie Lady 2 flew forward, but before it could strike, Despair Marionette's mouth opened and a dark fog started to spew out of it.

"Your attack activated my monster's effect." Myrine explained. "When it is attacked, the attack is negated and the original attack points of all monsters on the field become 0 until the end of the battle phase."

Aya growled in anger. "I set one card facedown and end my turn (HL2 0-1500, HL3 0-1500)."

Myrine drew a card. "I summon Shadow of Madness in attack mode (1000/1000)." A large, black shadow in the shape of a fiend appeared on the field. "I end my turn."

Aya drew a card. "I summon Harpie Lady 1 in attack mode (1300-1500/1400-1600). Her effect gives all wind monster 300 extra attack points (HL1 1500-1800, HL 2 1500-1800, HL 3 1500-1800). Now my Harpie Lady 1 will attack your Shadow of Madness." Harpie Lady 1 flew towards Shadow of Madness.

"The effect of Shadow of Madness activates." Myrine said coldly. "When it is attacked, it gains half of the attack monster's attack points (1000-1900). But luckily for you, it can't destroy monsters." Shadow of Madness easily knocked away Harpie Lady 1 and Aya's life points dropped from 4000-3900.

"I end my turn." Aya growled in anger.

Myrine drew a card. "I place one card facedown. I end my turn."

Aya drew a card. "I summon Harpie Girl in attack mode (500-700/500-700). Next I activate the spell card Double Summon, which allows me normal summon twice. So now I sacrifice my Harpie Girl and Harpie Lady 3 to summon Harpie's Pet Dragon in attack mode (2000-3100/2500-2700). I'm sure I don't need to explain its effect, so now I use Premature Burial to special summon my Harpie Lady 3 from my graveyard (3900-3100) giving my Harpie's Pet Dragon another boost (3100-3400). Now my Harpie's Hunting Ground field spell will destroy your facedown card." Myrine's facedown card was destroyed ". Now my Harpie's Pet Dragon will attack your Shadow of Madness!" Shadow of Madness's attack points rose to 2700 as Harpie's Pet Dragon grabbed it in its jaws and bit it clean in two. Myrine's life points dropped from 4000-3300. "I end my turn."

Myrine drew a card. "I activate the spell Endless Despair. When I have a monster with 0 attack points on the field, all cards except for monsters whose original attack points are 0 are destroyed." A black mist covered the field. Loud screeches and tearing sounds could be heard until the fog disappeared, revealing only Despair Marionette on the field. "Now my Endless Despair will allow my Despair Marionette to attack the number of times equal to the monster that were just destroyed."

Aya laughed. "Why would that matter?" she scoffed. "You doll has no attack points! Since your Despair Marionette has 0 attack points, any attacks it would make would be pointless!"

"Normally that would be true." Myrine said as held up a card from her hand. "But I have one more card to play." Myrine slipped the card into her duel disk. "I activate the equip spell card Axe of Despair to increase Dark Marionette's attack points by 1000." Aya gasped as the axe appeared in Dark Marionette's hand (0-1000/0). "Now, Dark Marionette will attack your life points directly." Dark Marionette lurched forward and slashed Aya four times with Axe of Despair. Aya's life points dropped to 0.

"The winner is Myrine Yonai." Anthia announced as the students applauded timidly. Some had been disturbed by the strange cards used by Myrine. Myrine simply turned and walked back to her seat.

Back up in the stands, Faron leaned over to Edon and whispered, "You'd think she'd crack a smile even after she won." Suddenly, and small knifed embedded itself on the seat arm rest and a millimeter from Faron's arm. Faron yelled and surprise and jumped away, causing him to crash into Edon and fall into the next row.

"Idiot." Myrine muttered as she retrieved her knife. Meanwhile, the next two duelists were being chosen. "The first duelist is Nori Luchi!" An Obelisk Blue Boy stood up and walked down to the dueling field. "The second duelist is Edon Ando!" With a grunt, Edon stood up and walked down to the dueling field.

"I'll start us off." Nori said as he drew a card. "I set a monster facedown, and place two cards facedown. I end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "I summon Flamer Soldier in attack mode (1700/1300)." A soldier armed with a large flamethrower appeared on the field. "Flamer Soldier, attack his facedown." Flamer Soldier walked over to the facedown and sprayed it with flame. "By the way, my Flamer Soldier destroys any defense mode monster it attacks." The card shattered.

"I activate my trap card Snake Whistle!" Nori shouted. "This card allows me to special a reptile type monster from my deck when a reptile monster I control is destroyed. So I special summon Humanoid Snake in attack mode (1800/1100)." A large grey snake appeared on the field. Where its head would have been, there was a male torso with two arms and a serpentine head.

"Whatever," Edon sighed. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Nori drew a card. "I summon Botis in attack mode (1700/1900). Now my Humanoid Snake will attack your Flamer Soldier!" Humanoid Snake slithered forward and wrapped itself around Flamer Soldier, crushing it. Edon's life points dropped from 4000-3900. "Now the effect of my Humanoid Snake activates. When it destroys a monster, I can add a level 4 or lower reptile monster from my deck to my hand." Nori took a card from his deck and shuffled it. "Now my Botis will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate the trap Minefield!" Edon shouted as five metal objects appeared in front of him. "This trap will fill all of my monster zones with mine tokens. Now every time you make a direct attack, your monster will be destroyed along with a mine token." Botis slithered over one of the mines and exploded.

"I end my turn." Nori muttered.

Edon drew a card. "I summon Sniper Soldier in attack mode (1000/1500)." A man in a heavily camouflaged uniform holding a sniper rifle appeared on the field. "I activate the effect of my Sniper Soldier. He can attack you life points directly." Sniper Soldier fired its gun at Nori, his life points dropped from 4000-3000. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Nori drew a card. "I summon Invisibility Snake in attack mode (600/300)." A snake that was jumping between states of visibility and invisibility appeared on the field. "Now my Invisibility Snake will attack your life points directly!" Invisibility Snake slithered over to Edon and was destroyed by a mine token. "Now my Humanoid Snake will attack you Sniper Soldier!"

"I activate the trap card Negate Attack." Edon shouted.

Nori sighed as the attack of his Humanoid Snake was stopped. "I place one card facedown end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "My Sniper Soldier will make another direct attack." Sniper Soldier fired its rifle at Nori, and his life points dropped from 3000-2000. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Nori drew a card. "I summon Swampland Cobra in attack mode (1200/1300)." A small dark green cobra appeared on the field. "Now my Humanoid Snake will attack your Sniper Soldier!" Humanoid Snake slithered forward and destroyed Sniper Soldier with a swipe of its tail. Edon's life points dropped from 3900-3100. "Now I activate the effect of my Humanoid Snake to take reptile monster from my deck. Now my Swampland Cobra will attack your life points directly!" Swampland Cobra slithered forward only to be destroyed by a landmine token. "Now the effect of my Swampland Cobra activates! Since it was sent from the field to the graveyard, I can special summon another Swampland Cobra!" A second Swampland Cobra appeared on Nori's field. "Now it will attack your life points!" The second Swampland Cobra slithered forward and was destroyed by a landmine token. "Now I get to summon a third Swampland Cobra!" Nori shouted as the third Swampland Cobra appeared. "And now, it will make a direct attack!" The third Swampland Cobra slithered forward only to meet the same fate as the other two. "I end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "I activate my trap A Soldier's Rallying Cry. This trap allows me to special summon a level 4 monster with 'soldier' in its name from the graveyard. I special summon Sniper Soldier in attack mode (1000/1500). Sniper Soldier, attack his life points directly." Sniper Soldier fired at Nori and his life points dropped from 2000-1000. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Nori drew a card. He smirked broadly. "I remove my Humanoid Snake and the six other reptile monsters in my graveyard to special summon my **Evil Dragon Ananta **(?/?)!"

Edon yawed. "Yeah, big whoop."

Nori snorted in anger. "Yeah well, you change your tune when my Evil Dragon Ananta's attack and defense points gain 600 for every reptile monster I removed (0-4200/0-4200). Now my Evil Dragon Ananta will attack your Sniper Soldier!"

"I activate my trap Soldier's Orders!" Edon said. "When this card activates, all monsters with 'Soldier' in their name change battle position." Sniper Soldier switched to defense mode. It was soon destroyed.

"I end my turn." Nori muttered.

Edon drew a card. "You know, duelist like you who get one powerful monster and think they've got the duel in the bag really annoy me. Seriously, has it ever occurred to anyone that monsters like your Evil Dragon Ananta are really not that powerful. For example, I activate this card in my hand called Artillery Barrage. This card is the same as Black Hole, meaning that it destroys every monster on the field." There was a loud screeching sound and several small objects slammed into the ground, exploding as they hit the ground. "Now that your field is clear, all I have to do is summon a monster with 1000 attack points or more which I can. I summon Combat Engineer in attack mode (1500/1100)." A man wearing a green camouflage uniform appeared on the field. Several C4s were strung around his shoulders, and two Bangalore Torpedoes were slung over his back. "Now Combat Engineer will attack your life points directly!" Combat Engineer ran forward, panted some of its C4 around Nori, and ran off.

"Oh crap." Nori muttered. The C4 exploded, knocking Nori to the ground. His life points dropped to 0.

"The winner is Edon Ando!" Anthia shouted as the rest of the students applauded. Nori swore under his breath as he walked of the field, while Edon had just silently walked off.

* * *

**Myrine's Cards**

**Despair Marionette**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **When this card is attacked, negate the attack. Then the original attack points of monsters on the field become 0.

**Shadow of Madness**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **When this card attacks or is attacked, it gains half of the other monster's attack points. This card can't destroy monsters as a result of battle.

**Endless Despair **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a fog with several images of faces twisted in pain and fear swirling within it.

**Effect: **This card can only be activated if you controll one monster on the field whose attack points are 0. Destroy all monster on the field whoses attack points are not 0. All monsters whoses attack points are 0 can attack the same number of times as the number of monsters destroyed by this spell until the end of the turn.

**Edon's Cards**

**Flamer Soldier **

**Type: **monster/pyro/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1300)

**Effect: **When this card attacks a monster in defense mode, that card is automatically destroyed and battle damage is negate. If that monster is facedown, the monster is not flipped.

**Sniper Soldier **

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1000/1500)

**Effect: **This monster can attack your opponent's life points directly.

**Combat Engineer**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/1100)

**Effect: **Once per turn, destroy one facedown spell or trap card on the field.

**Artillery Barrage**

**Image: **several artillery pieces firing at the same time.

**Type: **normal spell

**Effect: **Destroy all monsters on the field.

**Minefield**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a minefield with several men walking into it.

**Effect: **Fill all of your empty monster zones with 'mine tokens'. When one mine token is destroyed, destroy the monster that attacked it.

**A Soldier's Rallying Cry**

**Image: **a officer shouting and waving a flag as soldiers cheer around him.

**Type: **normal trap

**Effect: **Special summon one monster with 'soldier' in its name from your graveyard.

**Soldier's Orders**

**Image: **a army officer barking orders to soldiers.

**Type: **normal trap

**Effect: **Change the battle positions of all monster with 'Soldier' in their name on the field.

**Nori's Cards**

**Humanoid Snake**

**Type: **monster/dark/reptile-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1800/1100)

**Effect: **When this card destroys a monster, add one level 4 or lower reptile monster from your deck to your hand.

**Invisibility Snake**

**Type:** monster/dark/reptile-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(600/300)

**Effect: **This card can attack your opponent's life points directly.

**Swampland Cobra **

**Type: **monster/earth/reptile-effect

**Level:** 4

**Stats: **(1200/1300)

**Effect:** When this card is removed from the field to the graveyard, special summon one 'Swampland Cobra' from your deck.


	13. A MiniTournament Part 6

"Now we got to the final duel of round 1." Anthia shouted as the T.V. screen blinked off. "Will Alexandra Hirano and Dana Uisimasa please come down to the dueling field?" On the far side of the auditorium, and Obelisk Blue Girl stood up and walked down to the dueling field.

On the other side of the Auditorium, Alexandra rose nervously from her seat. Trevor gave her a reassuring smile and a pat on the back. Felling more confident, Alexandra walked down to the dueling field. Trevor sighed. "Hmm, this is the first time she has dueled since last year." He watched her walk, "Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to convince her to come back."

Meanwhile, Chris had leaned his head back, closing his eyes. 'Man, I'm really tired' he thought to himself. He felt a nudge in his ribs and opened his eye. Caden was nudging him. "Yes, what is it?"

"I heard something about that Alexandra girl." Caden whispered in a conspiratorial tone. "I heard some Ra Yellows saying that she had a brother."

"So?"

"So, they say he was murdered." Now Caden has Chris's full attention. "They say some maniac tried to start a cult, and killed him when her brother spoke out against it."

"What a wonderful world we live in." Chris commented sardonically.

Down on the dueling field, Alexandra and Dana had taken their places on the field. Dana glared at Alexandra. "Do you remember me?" she asked. "I lost to you in the Miss Duel Academy Contest last year." Alexandra remained silent. "That had to be one of the most embarrassing moments of my life." She activated her duel disk. "I will now take my revenge for that embarrassment!"

Alexandra sighed as she activated her duel disk. 'Of all the things to be upset about,'

"I'll make the first move!" Dana shouted as she drew a card. "I summon Mother Grizzly in attack mode (1400/1000). I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Alexandra drew a card. "I summon The Crusader in attack mode (1700/1500)." A knight in plate armor appeared on the field next to Alexandra. Besides the gray plate armor, the knight wore a Gambeson over the breast plate and the knight was holding a large shield. On both the shield and the Gambeson, there was a large red cross on their center. "The Crusader will now attack your Mother Grizzly." The Crusader charged forward, drew its sword, and sliced Mother Grizzly in half. Dana's life points dropped from 4000-3700.

"My Mother Grizzly's effect activates!" Dana shouted. "When it is destroyed as a result of battle, I can special summon a water monster whose attack points are 1500 or less from my deck." Dana took her deck out of her disk, and took out a card. "I special summon Creeping Doom Manta (1300/1200)."

"I end my turn by placing one card facedown." Alexandra said calmly.

Dana drew a card. "I sacrifice my Creeping Doom Manta to summon Shark the Crew in attack mode (1800/2200). Now it will attack you The Crusader." Shark the Crew sped forward, running over The Crusader. Alexandra's life points dropped from 4000-3900."

"That activates the effect of my The Crusader." Alexandra explained. "When it is destroyed, I get to take a level 4 or lower warrior type monster from my deck to my hand." Alexandra took a card from her deck.

"I end my turn." Dana said.

Alexandra drew a card. "I summon Lone Archer in attack mode (1450/1200)." A young man wearing a brown tunic, green pants, and a large red scarf draped around his neck and shoulders appeared on the field. He held a large, oak bow. "I activate the effect of my Lone Archer. If he is the only card on my field, he can destroy one monster on the field. So say good-bye to Shark the Crew!" Lone Archer raised its bow and fired an arrow at Shark the Crew, destroying it.

Dana smirked. "You just activated the effect of my Shark the Crew. When it is destroyed by a card effect, I get to special summon to level 4 or lower water type monsters from my deck. I special summon Mad Lobster (1700/1000) and 7 Colored Fish (1800/800)."

"Hmm," Alexandra looked at her hand. "I end my turn."

Dana drew a card. "I sacrifice my Mad Lobster to summon Bitelon in attack mode (2400/1000). Now my 7 Colored Fish will attack your Loner Archer!" 7 Colored Fish swam forward and bit off the head of Lone Archer, the rest of its body shattering. Alexandra's life points dropped from 3900-3650. "Now my Bitelon will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate my trap, Spirit Force!" Alexandra shouted. "Not only will it negate the battle damage that I would have taken, I get to take a warrior with 1500 defense points or less from my graveyard. More specifically, my The Crusader."

"Dang," Dana muttered. "I end my turn."

Alexandra drew a card. "I set one monster in defense mode and place one card facedown. I end my turn."

Dana drew a card. "My Bitelon will now attack your facedown monster!" Bitelon flew towards the facedown monster.

"I activate my trap Negate Attack!" Alexandra shouted.

"I counter by activating my trap, Reverse Negation!" Dana shouted. "Since you activated a card that negates my attack, my trap will negate your Negate Attack." Alexandra's Negate Attack shattered. Bitelon's attack continued and it destroyed the facedown card, revealing it to be The Crusader.

"I don't think I need to explain my The Crusader's effect again." Alexandra said as she took a card from her deck.

"It doesn't matter really because the effect of my Bitelon activates." Dana began to explain. "When it destroys a monster in defense mode, the difference between that monsters defense points and my monster's attack points come out of your life points. Alexandra's life points dropped from 3650-2750. "Now my 7 Colored Fish will attack your life points directly!" 7 Colored Fish swam forward and slapped Alexandra with its tail. Her life points dropped from 2750- 950. "I end my turn at that."

Alexandra drew a card. "I activate the spell card Graceful Charity. This allows me to draw three cards and discard two." Alexandra drew three cards and discarded two. "Now I summon Marauding Captain in attack mode (1200/400). Now the effect of my Marauding Captain activates, which allows me to special summon a level 4 or lower warrior monster. I special summon Arthur, Warrior of Courage in attack mode (1600/1200)." A man in silver plate armor appeared on the field. A long red cape hung from the shoulder armor, and it was holding a large, round, red shield. "Now I activate the spell card Double Summon! This allows me to normal summon twice this turn. I normal summon Eric, Warrior of Peace in attack mode (900/1800)." A young man dressed in green robes hold a long wooden staff appeared on the field. "Now I activate the spell card Premature Burial! I sacrifice 800 life points so I can special summon a monster from the graveyard. I special summon Aaron, Warrior of Justice in attack mode (1900/200)." An old man wearing a blue tunic, grey pants, and holding a scale and large broad sword appeared on the field. "Next I activate the spell Warrior's Magic. If I tribute a warrior monster one my field, I can take two spell cards from my deck. So I sacrifice my Marauding Warrior to activate it." Alexandra discarded Marauding Captain and took two cards from her deck.

"Is there a point to this?" Dana asked with a yawn. "Because this is getting boring."

"Now I activate one of the spells I took." Alexandra said slipping a card into her duel disk. "I activate Force of the Warriors!" Arthur, Warrior of Courage, Eric, Warrior of Peace, and Aaron, Warrior of Justice stepped forward in unison and lifted their weapons until they crossed each other. There was a bright flash of light and a large explosion. When the light faded, the field was completely clean except for Alexandra's three monsters.

"W-what the heck just happened?!" Dana shouted.

"That was the effect of my spell card." Alexandra explained. "You see, Force of the Warriors can only activate if I have Arthur, Warrior of Courage, Eric, Warrior of Peace, and Aaron, Warrior of Justice are the only cards on my field. It destroys all spell cards on the field, while its only drawback is that my three monsters can attack. But they don't need to because…." Alexandra paused. "I-I sacrifice my three monsters to special summon Ollivander, the Warrior of All (3200/2800)."

A large young man in armor appeared on the field. His armor was a dark shape of blue, and a large blue cape hung from his shoulders. He was holding a large, deep blue shield and holding a large one-handed sword. The man was not wearing a helmet, revealing that he had a mop of brownish hair. The man turned and gave a reassuring smile to Alexandra.

"I activate the effect of my Ollivander, the Warrior of All." Alexandra said quietly. "First off, all warrior monsters on the field gain 500 attack points (3200-3700/2800). Now you lose 200 life points for every warrior type monster in my graveyard." Dana's life points dropped from 3900-2900. "Now my Ollivander will attack your life points directly!" Ollivander, the Warrior of All charge forward and sliced at Dana with his sword. Dana fell back as her life points dropped from 2900-0.

Then something weird happened. The holographic image of Ollivander flickered, became static, and shattered. Then on every duel disk in the auditorium, the word 'Error' came up on the life point counter. There were several cries of surprise and indignation from the crowd.

"Attention students." Anthia shouted over the muttering of the crowd. "There seems to be a problem with the Island's hologram system. As of the moment, all students are not to duel using their duel disks. Therefore, our little tournament is cancelled." There were groans from the students. "Also, all students are to report to their dorm rooms." There were more groans from the crowd as they reluctantly obeyed the order. Trevor managed to fight his way through the crowd and get to Alexandra's side.

"That monster you played, Ollivander, Warrior of All. Is it just me or did it strongly resemble…"

"Oliver?" Alexandra interrupted. "Yes, it does."

"Where did you get a card that looks like Oliver?" asked Trevor.

"Well…."

-----Flashback-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been two weeks since Oliver's death. Alexandra had stayed shut up in her room, only coming out for meals and a couple of times to go outsides. She couldn't even be convinced to leave her room with the desperate pleads of her parents. However, things were about to change.

It was a regular day. Alexandra was still in a deep depression. She spent most of the day lay in her bed crying. Sunlight shone in through her bed room window and light up her face. She turned her had so it was not facing the sunlight. As she moved her head, she saw her duel disk sitting on her desk. She got up from her bed and picked up her duel disk.

"Should I keep it, or throw it away?" she muttered to herself. She wanted to throw it away because of all of the memories she associated with it. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. "Go away."

"Alexandra, you got a package in the mail." Alexandra opened her door to see her mother standing in the hallway holding a package. Her mother handed Alexandra the package and walked away. Alexandra sat down on her bed and examined the pack. It wasn't a big, about the size of a duel monsters card. She opened the package. A note fell out, and Alexandra picked it up and read it.

_Dear Miss. Alexandra Hirano._

_I write this letter to you because I want to express my sadness over the death of your brother. I also want to apologize. I must admit that I have a share of blame in what Ryan had done. It the situations like these that make me wish I had never brought Duel Monsters to the modern world and just have left it a relic of the past. I hope you and your family can find peace._

_From: Pegasus J. Crawford._

Alexandra looked from the note to the package. There was something else in it. She took the package and took the second item out. It was a duel monsters card. Ollivander, Warrior of All

-----End Flashback------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So Pegasus made a card that looks like your brother?" Trevor asked. Alexandra nodded. Trevor, seeing that no more needed to be said, put his arm around Alexandra's shoulders and escorted her to her room.

* * *

**Alexandra's Cards**

**The Crusader **

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1500)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, add one level 4 warrior monster from your deck to your hand.

**Lone Archer**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level:** 4

**Stats: **(1450/1200)

**Effect: **If this card is the only card on your side of the field during the main phase, destroy one card on your opponent's side of the field.

**Arthur, Warrior of Courage **

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/1200)

**Effect: **none

**Eric, Warrior of Peace**

**Type: **monster/light/warrior

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(900/1800)

**Effect: **none

**Aaron, Warrior of Justice **

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1900/200)

**Effect: **none

**Ollivander, Warrior of All**

**Type:** monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(3200/2800)

**Effect:** This card can't be normal summoned or set. This card can only be special summoned by sacrificing three warrior type monster on the field. When this card is special summoned, inflict 200 points of damage to your opponent for every warrior type monster in your graveyard. All warrior type monsters on your side of the field gain 500 attack points. Once per turn, negate one spell, trap, or card effect that target a warrior type monster. When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, special one warrior type monster from your hand or graveyard.

**Warrior's Magic **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a warrior hold a large stack of spell books.

**Effect: **Tribute one warrior type monster one your side of the field. Take two spell cards from your deck and add them to your hand.

**Force of the Warriors **

**Type:** quick spell

**Image: **Arthur, Warrior of Courage, Eric, Warrior of Peace, and Aaron, Warrior of Justice standing in a circle with their weapons rased.

**Effect: **This card can only be activate if Arthur, Warrior of Courage, Eric, Warrior of Peace, and Aaron, Warrior of Justice are the only cards on your field. Destroy all cards on your opponent's side of the field. Arthur, Warrior of Courage, Eric, Warrior of Peace, and Aaron, Warrior of Justice can't attack on the same turn this card is activated.

**Dana's Cards**

**Reverse Negation **

**Type: **normal trap

**Image:** a negate attack card with large chains wraping around it.

**Effect: **Negate any card that negates an attack, card effect, activation, or summoning.


	14. Ominous Fortunetelling

The first rays of the sunrise just began to illuminate the Duel Academy Island. Very few people were up at this time of the day. This people were mainly teachers, staff, farmers, and disciples of Benjamin Franklin. Chris was not one of those people. Due to the fact that the school's hologram mainframe was down and there were no classes today, Chris was intent on sleeping in for as long as possible, or so he thought.

_Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap._

Chris sat up, not quit realizing what had wakened him. He looked around his pitch dark room. His clock said that it was 6:35 a.m. He lay back on the bed. He hoped that whoever it was would go away.

_Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap. _

Chris reluctantly got up from his bed. He turned the lights on and squinted as the light hurt his dark accustom eyes. "Who is up at this ungodly hour?" Chris muttered to himself as he walked across his room. Chris opened the door. Nobody was there. Chris growled in annoyance as he closed the door. He opened it again when he realized that there was something on the floor. He looked down and picked it up. It was a duel monsters card. Chris brought it into his room to see what it was. It was Arcana Force 0-The Fool. Without another thought, Chris placed the card on his bedside table and went back to bed.

When Chris next woke up, sunlight was shining brightly through his window. He looked over to his clock which said 10:45 a.m. He took a quick shower and left his room. It was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch, so Chris decided that wander around aimlessly. Several students were out, decorating the school grounds for the upcoming Spirit Day.

Chris's aimless wonderings took him into the island's jungle. Chris found the jungle a strangely relaxing place to be. The silence was almost absolute. The path and pathway signs were the only visible signs of human presence on the island in the jungle. Chris looked up into the trees to see the occasional monkey swinging from tree to tree. As Chris moved further into the jungle, the path became narrow and foliage became thicker. The trees blocked out the sun and it became hard to see the path in front of him.

Suddenly, the path came into a large clearing. The sun managed to shine through here. Chris looked around the clearing. Chris moved into the clear a little bit, but stopped. He saw something in the shadows. Chris advanced towards it slowly. Suddenly, the object groaned and moved. It was a person! Chris ran over to help him or her. It was an Obelisk Blue Boy. Chris swung the teen's arm over his shoulders and helped him up.

The Obelisk Blue groaned. "What, what happened?"

"I don't know. I was about to ask you that." Chris replied as he began to half carry, half drag the Obelisk Blue along. "So, can you walk?" The teen tried to stand on his own, but fell over again. "Why are you out here anyway?"

The Obelisk Blue rubbed his head. "Argh, I don't remember." He groaned again. "Man, I have a terrible headache." After twenty minutes, Chris managed to get the Obelisk Blue to the main building were his burden was relieved by the nurse.

After this, Chris grabbed a quick lunch. When he went outside again, he noticed a large group of people near the Slifer Red Dorm. He went to investigate. Next to the Slifer Red dorms, a large, dark blue tent had been set up. A sign that read 'Yasuko, the Magnificent, guaranteed to accurately predict your future 100% of the time' was driven into the ground at the entrance of the tent.

"A fortuneteller!" Chris exclaimed, looking at the large number of people in line.

"Hi Chris!" Chris turned to see Rubye waving at him from the line. Chris walked over to her.

"Rubye, you actually believe in this stuff?" Chris asked.

Rubye shrugged. "Well, not entirely. But at least it is something fun to do since we can't duel and there aren't any classes. By the way, why are you wearing your duel disk?" Chris looked around. He was the only person there that was still wearing their duel disk.

"It's a force of habit." Chris replied. "So what are you going to dress up as for Spirit Day?"

"I haven't decided." Rubye replied. "It's a chose between either...."

"Next!" Both Rubye and Chris were startled by the shout. Turing forward, Rubye realized that she was next. Rubye rushed forward and into the tent. A few groans of relief came from the people in the line as they moved forward. Line was now significantly shorter. Chris waited outside for Rubye to come back out after her fortune was told. It was about 10 minutes before Rubye came back out.

"What was your fortune?" Chris asked Rubye.

Rubye smiled whimsically. "I'm not going to tell you. But there is something that the fortuneteller wanted me to tell you. She wants to see so you can give her back her card." Chris thought about what she meant as Rubye walked back to her dorm. Then it hit him, the Arcana Force 0-The Fool. Chris ran back to his dorm, took the card from his bed side table, and ran back to the tent. By now, there was no line and the last person was leaving.

Chris walked into the tent. A large oak table sat in the middle of the tent. On all four corners of the table sat four candles, which was the only source of light in the tent. Sitting in the middle of the table was a large crystal ball that was glowing with an eerie blue light. Sitting at the far end of the table was the fortuneteller. She or at least Chris assumed it was a she, was wearing a bright red veil that covered her entire face except for her green eyes. She wore a long dress that was the same color as the veil she wore. _'Wearing clothes like on a tropical island? She must be hot!'_ Chris thought.

"Christopher Saigo. I've been expecting you. I am Yasuko, the Magnificent." the Fortuneteller said mystically. She motioned to a chair on Chris's end of the table. "Won't you please have a seat?"

"You know, most fortunetellers say that 'I've been expecting you' line to make it seem like they're ahead of everyone else." Chris said as he sat down.

"A skeptic I see." Yasuko said. "That makes things more fun. Perhaps a demonstration is in order."

"What sort of demonstration?" Chris asked.

"A duel." Yasuko said as she placed a deck on the table. "The majority of my cards require a coin toss. I will prove my powers by calling all of the coin tosses right."

"Isn't that cheating?" Chris asked.

"In this case, no because whether or not I call it right doesn't matter." Yasuko said as she shuffled her deck.

"So we're table top dueling then." Chris commented as he removed his deck and shuffled it.

"Something like that." Yasuko said as she put her deck down. "Check under your chair." Chris leaned over and looked under his chair. He saw a large, keyboard shaped object under it. Whatever it was, it was very heavy. He lifted it up and put it on the table, making the table shutter. It resembled the old card mats, and the old hologram projectors used during the Duelist Kingdom tournament. "It's low-tech, I know, but it operations on a different hologram mainframe so it isn't effected by the virus."

"Okay, so lets get started." Chris said as he placed his deck in the deck slot. Both hologram boards started to hum, and they light up.

"I shall go first." Yasuko said as she drew a card. "I summon Arcana Force VI-The Lovers in attack mode (1600/1600)." When Yasuko placed the card on the board, a small hologram of the monster appeared over the card. A large holographic coin appeared between the two duelists. "If the coin lands on heads, then this card counts as two tributes if I use it to tribute summon an Acrana Force monster. If it lands on tails, I can tribute summon any Arcana Force monsters." A coin flipped up into the air. "It will land on tails." The coin fell back to the ground. It was tails.

Chris was still skeptical. "A lucky guess. Either way it doesn't help you much."

"I set two cards and end my turn." Yasuko said, placing the two cards on the board.

Chris drew a card. "I play the field spell Magical City Endymion!" Instead of appearing around them, the field spell appeared on the boards. "I summon Magical Exemplar in attack mode (1700/1400). Magical Exemplar, attack Arcana Force VI-The Lovers!" Magical Exemplar lifted her hands and a spell blasted from them. It disappeared as it left Chris's board, but reappeared and slammed into Arcana Force VI-The Lovers. Yasuko's life points dropped from 4000-3900. "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Yasuko drew a card. "I activate the spell card Reverse Reborn (MESC-2, MCESC-1). This allows me to special summon an Arcana Force monster, so I special summon Arcana Force III-The Empress (1300/1300). Since it was special summoned by Reverse Reborn, its get its tails effect. But that doesn't matter because I sacrifice it to summon Arcana Force XIV-Temperance in attack mode (2400/2400)." The large coin reappeared and flipped into the air. "It will land on heads." The coin fell back to the ground. It was heads. "Its head effect makes it so that all damage I take is halved. Now my Arcana Force XIV-Temperance will attack your Magical Exemplar!"

"I activate the trap Negate Attack!" Chris shouted as his trap activated. "This trap stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

"I end my turn." Yasuko said.

Chris drew a card. "I summon A Man with Wdjat in attack mode (1600/1600). Now I activate the spell card Magical Dimension (MESC-4, MCESC-2)! For this spell to work, I need to sacrifice a monster." A Man with Wdjat shattered. "Now I get to special summon a spellcaster from my hand. Come forth, Dark Magician (2500/2000)." The famous spellcaster monster appeared on the field. Chris had been hoping for some sort of reaction from Yasuko. None was forthcoming, so he continued. "Lastly, my spell card destroys on of your monsters." Arcana Force XIV-Temperance shattered. "Now my Dark Magician will attack your life points directly!" Dark Magician's attack speed away from Chris's board, appeared on Yasuko's board, and slammed into her. Her life points dropped from 3900-1400.

"I activate the trap, Damage Condenser!" Yasuko shouted. "If I discard a card, this trap will special summon a monster whose attack points are equal to the damage I just took." Yasuko discarded a card and took a card from his deck. "I special summon Arcana Force XV-The Devil in attack mode (2500/2500)." A large coin appeared and flipped into the air. "It will land on tails."

"Crap." Chris muttered. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Yasuko drew a card. "I activate the spell card Suit of Sword X (MESC-6, MCESC-3)." The coin reappeared and flipped into the air. "It will land on heads." The coin fell back to the ground. It was heads. "Now all monsters on your side of the field will be destroyed." Several swords appeared and squared Dark Magician and Magical Exemplar.

"Since my Magical Exemplar had spell counters, all of its spell counters get added to Magical City Endymion." Chris said.

"Now I summon Arcana Force IV-The Emperor in attack mode (1400/1400)." The large coin reappeared and flipped into the air. "It will land on tails." The coin fell back to the ground. It was tails. "This means that every Arcana Force monster loses 500 attack points. However, I activate the trap Reversing Destiny. This trap will change the coin toss to heads, meaning that instead Arcana Force monsters gain 500 attack points (2500-3000/2500) (1400-1900/1400). Now my Arcana Force XV-The Devil and Arcana Force IV-The Emperor will attack your life points directly." Both of Yasuko monsters converged on Chris and attacked him simultaneously, the force of which almost knocked him out of the chair. Chris's life points dropped to 3100. Then Arcana Force IV-The Emperor

"You don't seem surprised." Chris said as he repositioned himself on the chair. "Aren't you wondering why my life points didn't drop to 0?"

"No, because I already know why." Yasuko answered. "That facedown card of yours was Nutrient Z. I already knew that would happen. I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I remove six of the spell counters from Magical City Endymion to special summon Divine Magician Deity Endymion in attack mode (2700/1700). When Divine Magician Deity Endymion is summoned, I get to take a spell from my graveyard." Chris took a card from his graveyard. "Now I discard that spell card to activate Divine Magician Deity Endymion's other effect. When I discard a spell card, I can destroy a card one the field. So say good-bye to your Arcana Force XV-The Devil!" Yasuko's Arcana Force XV-The Devil shattered. "Now my Divine Magician Deity Endymion will attack you directly!" Divine Magician Deity Endymion pointed its staff at Yasuko and blasted magical energy at Yasuko, the force of the blow knocking her out of her chair. Her life points dropped to 0.

"I can't say that I'm surprised." Yasuko said as she got back on the chair. "I saw that I wouldn't win this duel."

"Can you please cut the act?" Chris scoffed. "If you can read the future, then why didn't you take steps to make sure that you'd win?"

Yasuko gasped. "I would never do such a thing!" she snapped. "The future is no some idle plaything to be tampered to fit our needs." Yasuko glared at Chris. When she spoke again, her voice didn't have as much hostility in it. "The future is a fickle. It is made by the decisions of today; therefore it can easily be changed. Even the smallest change can drastically alter the future."

"Okay, that was deep." Chris commented.

"But it's true!" Yasuko shouted. "But I digress. Now, it's time I read your fortune." Yasuko reached into her dress and pulled out a deck of cards. At first, Chris thought it was a deck of duel monsters cards. But when Chris got a good look at them, he realized that they were tarot cards. "Could you please hold these for a moment?" Chris took the cards and held them in the palm of his hand. Suddenly there was a bright blue flash of light. Startled, Chris jumped back but stumbled over his chair. The tarot cards had flown from his hand and had landed in front of Yasuko. "If you'll get back up, we can begin." Chris sat his chair back up and he sat down.

Yasuko drew a card and placed it faceup on the table. It showed a family standing in a field. A young man stood in the middle of the group. "You are happy, young man. You have a loving family that will support you when you need it." Yasuko drew another card and placed it faceup on the table. It showed the same young man surrounded by a group of people about his age. "You leave home on a great adventure. You will make many friends and find something deeper." Yasuko drew another card and placed it faceup on the table. It showed the same young man standing on a cliff. He was staring at approaching storm clouds. "But a great danger approaches however." Yasuko drew another card and placed it faceup. It showed the young man, dressed and equipped for battle, standing in front of an army of demons. "You will be faced with long and difficult trials, each more difficult than the last. They will test your every fiber of strength and morality." Yasuko drew one final card and placed it faceup on the table. It showed a ring of fir with a black rose in the middle. Yasuko cringed. "Evil. Pure evil."

"What kind of evil?" Chris asked.

Yasuko shook her head. "It doesn't say." Yasuko took the cards from the table and placed them back in her dress. "In the end, I urge you to be careful. A great evil is coming."

"Okay." Chris said as he got up from his chair.

"Before you go, I'd like my card back." Yasuko said.

"What?" Chris asked, but then he remembered. "Oh, yeah. Right, the Arcana Force 0-The Fool." Chris took the card from his pocket and gave it to Yasuko.

"Thank you." Yasuko said. Chris walked out of the tent without another word. He was still skeptical. Chris had never believed in that sort of stuff. Besides, he never wanted to know his future.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Chris shouted to himself. "If that was her card, then what was she doing outside my room!" Chris turned to go back into the tent. "What the...!" he shouted. The tent was gone, and there was no sign that it had ever been there. _'What on earth is going on here? Was that real, or did I just imagine that?'_ Chris walked back to his dorm, still pondering the question.

* * *

The beaches of Duel Academy are always a popular place for the students in their free time. The waves gently lapped the shoreline. The sun shone brightly, and the seagulls flew overhead, occasionally crying out. All of these, however, were ignored by Faron who was literally roasting alive.

Faron wiped the sweat from his brow. "It is way too hot."

Suddenly, a shadow crossed his face. "Faron, what the heck are you doing?"

Faron sat up. Edon was standing over him, glaring at him. "Um, I don't know."

"Idiot." Edon muttered. "Adelie wants to talk to us at the Abandon Dorm."

"What for?" Faron asked.

"I don't know! Just come on!" Edon shouted. He grabbed Faron by the scruff of the neck and started to drag him. After ten minutes of Edon dragging, and Faron trying to walk they reached the Abandon Dorm. When they reached the lab, Adelie and Masaru were already there waiting for them.

"Good," Adelie said. "Now that you're here, we can get down to business." Adelie took a folder from a table and handed it to Edon. "I need you and Faron to get these cards for me."

"Why doesn't it have to by Faron?" Edon whinned.

"Because everyone else is busy, and Faron is your only way off the island." Adelie growled.

"Come on Edon." Faron said cheerfully. "Time's a wasting!" Edon growled in annoyance as he took a hold of Faron's shoulder. With a loud _pop_, the two disappeared.

Adelie turned to Masaru. "Masaru, do you still have the test subjects that you used for this." Adelie pointed to the amulet around her neck. Masaru nodded, walked back to the back of the lab, and brought forth the three males and one female. "Good, I have a use for them after all." She held up her hand and stuck out her index and middle fingers. She then walked up to all four and stabbed each in the chest. The four screamed in unison as darkness spread from the stab sites. Adelie smiled wickedly the four were covered in darkness and started to change.

Things were going to change around here.

* * *

I'd like to point out that I used the Japanese names for Magical City Endymion, and Divine Magician Deity Endymion.


	15. The Holograms are Back!

It was a few hours later that Faron and Edon returned. With a loud _pop_, Faron and Edon appeared on the lab. Masaru, who was the only person in the lab, jumped. Unfortunately for him, had been holding explosive chemicals and the sudden movement had caused them to explode. Faron and Edon however, were worse off. Faron, covered in cuts and bruises, had collapsed while Edon, who was sporting a black eye, was leaning against a table.

"What the heck happened to you two?" Masaru asked.

Edon was carrying a briefcase and placed it on the table as he answered. "Well, we had just picked up the cards. We were trying to find a place to teleport back, because we obviously can't teleport in front of everybody. Then Faron decided to bad mouth the anime Naruto."

Masaru looked over at beaten Faron. "And you felt compelled to beat him up because he doesn't like your favorite anime?"

"No, believe it or not I am not responsible for this. Unfortunately for Faron, several Naruto fanboys happen to be nearby and you know how fanboys get. I was perfectly content to watch them beat the crap out of Faron. But some of them started coming after me so I had to retaliate." Edon gently touched his black eye and winced.

Masaru took the briefcase and looked through the cards. "Yep, you got them all."

"Of course I did!" Edon shouted. "I always get a job done, and get it done right!" Edon started to walk out.

"Hey, wait! Take Faron with you!" Masaru shouted. Grumbling to himself, Edon roughly threw Faron over his shoulder and walked out.

* * *

The sun had not quit risen over Duel Academy. Very few things were up and about at this time. There was not a sound to be heard, with complete and total silence. But this would not last for long however. Chris awoke with a start. There were shouts coming from the hallway and the sounds of people running up and down the hallway. Chris jumped from his bed and ran to the door. "What's wrong, are we on fire!?" Chris shouted into the hallway.

The students in the hall were not panicked. They were celebrating! Students were running up and down the hallway, screaming their jubilance. Several other students were doing happy little jigs. Then Chris saw that several duel monsters were in the hallway.

"Chris! The duel disks are working again!" Caden shouted running up to Chris.

"You mean that is what this celebration is about!" Chris shouted back. Caden nodded. "Are you people crazy! I'm going back to bed!" But Caden didn't hear Chris for he had started off down the hallway, summoning his three Missileroids as he went.

Now that the hologram mainframe was back on line, classes continued as normal. This was a disappointment to some students who had enjoyed the time off. Unfortunately for Chris, the celebrating had gone on for the rest of the morning so he had been unable to get any sleep. So when he arrived in Duel Monsters Studies.

"Hi Chris." Caden said as he and Dustin moved into seats next to Chris. "Not get much sleep, I see."

"How could I?" Chris moaned. "With all that racket literally outside my room." Before the conversation could continue, Anthia started to talk.

"Good afternoon students." She said in her soft voice. "Today we are going to start studying tag duels. I think a good way to start our studies of with a demonstration. So will the volunteers please come up?" Caden, Dustin and other teen males who Chris knew as Shiro and Dai walked to the front of the room. "I've arranged for a little demonstration, so if you'll four will please begin?" The four took positions across from each other. "One last thing I would like to note, normal a tag duel would have 8000 life points but for the sake of time they will only have 4000."

"I'll start us off." Shiro said as he drew a card. "I summon Warm Worm in attack mode (600/1400). I place one card facedown and end my turn."

"I'll go next." Dustin said as he drew a card. "I summon Speed Biker in attack mode (1600/900)." A large streamlined motorcycle; complete with rider, with two large rockets attacked to the back of the frame appeared on the field. "I end my turn."

"My turn," Dai said as he drew a card. "I summon Ace Knight-Diamond in attack mode (1700/1300)." A knight in white armor appeared on the field. A pattern of small, red diamonds covered the armor and a large ace was on the shield. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Tugroid in attack mode (1200/1400)." A large tugboat with two large eyes on the wheelhouse appeared on the field. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Shiro drew a card. "I set one monster facedown on the field. Then I activate the continuous spell card Internal Flipping." There a few giggles from the other students. "It's a silly name I know, but it allows me to flip summon a monster even if I set it this turn. So I flip summon Worm Dimikles (1700-2000/1400-1700)."

"Why did that thing's attack points go up?" Caden asked.

"When Worm Dimikles is flip summoned, he gains 300 attack and defense points." Shiro explained. "Now my Worm Dimikles will attack Tugroid." Worm Dimikles crawled forward to attack.

"I activate the effect of a monster in my hand, Speed Guard!" Dustin shouted. A large shield with several rockets attached to it appeared between Worm Dimikles and Tugroid. "If I discard Speed Guard from my hand, I can negate one attack."

"I switch Warm Worm to defense mode and end my turn." Shiro finished.

Dustin drew a card. "I summon Speed Gears in attack mode (200/300). Next I activate the spell Premature Burial which allows me to special summon a monster from the graveyard if I pay 800 life points (4000-3200). I special summon Speed Guard (0/1900). I tune Speed Gears and Speed Guard to synchro summon Hyper Speed Samurai (2000/1600). Hyper Speed Samurai, attack Ace Knight-Diamond!" Hyper Speed Samurai blasted forward.

"I activate Negate Attack!" Dai shouted. But his trap card didn't activate. "What!? Why doesn't it activate?" Hyper Speed Samurai sliced Ace Knight-Diamond in half (4000-3700).

"It didn't activate because of the effect of my Hyper Speed Samurai." Dustin explained. "When Hyper Speed Samurai attacks, you can't activate spell or trap cards."

"Well the effect of my Ace Knight-Diamond activates." Dai said. "I allows me to special summon Diamond-10 in defense mode (1000/1000)." A large ten of Diamonds playing card appeared on the field.

"Like that matters because my Hyper Speed Samurai can attack twice since I used Speed Gears in the synchro summoning." Dustin said. "Now Hyper Speed Samurai, attack his Diamond-10!" Hyper Speed Samurai blasted forward and sliced Diamond-10 apart. "Now my Speed Biker will attack Warm Worm!" Speed Biker sped forward and ran over Warm Worm, squashing it.

"Warm Worm's effect now activates!" Shiro shouted. "When it's destroyed, the top three cards in your deck get sent to the graveyard." Dustin discarded the three cards.

"I place two cards facedown and end my turn." Dustin said.

Dai drew a card. "I activate Pick a Card! This spell card allows me to take five monsters from my deck, one you pick one of the monsters. That monster is then summoned and the rest go to the graveyard." Dai took the five monster from his deck and showed them to Caden. The monsters were Diamond-5 (500/500), Diamond-2 (200/200), Diamond-Ace (0/0), Diamond-9 (900/900), and Diamond-6 (600/600).

"Is it just me, or do your cards resemble the old playing cards?" Caden asked.

"Yeah, in fact this is one of the four decks I own. Each deck resembles the four different suits." Dai answered.

"Okay, that's a bit weird." Caden muttered. "I chose Diamond-Ace."

Dai smiled as he placed Diamond-Ace on his field and sent the other four cards to the graveyard. "I was hoping you'd choose that card, and now I'll show you why. I summon Joker in attack mode (0/0)." A clown resembling the joker on the joker playing card appeared on the field. "You see, my Joker has a rather interesting effect. When used in a synchro summoning when the tuner is Diamond-Ace, Spade-Ace, Clubs-Ace, or Hearts-Ace, then Joker automatically fulfills the level number for any synchro monster I choose."

"Crap." Caden moaned. "I wouldn't have chosen Diamond-Ace if I had known it was a tuner."

"It's too late for would haves." Dai teased. "I tune my Diamond-Ace and Joker to synchro summon Diamond-King in attack mode (0/0)." A man in flowing robes and a crown on his head appeared on the field. A pattern of diamonds ran across the base of the crown and down the front of the robes. The man was also holding a large battle axe with a yellow blade. "Now his effect activates. For every monster with 'Diamond' monster in my graveyard, he gains 300 attack and defense points (0-2100/0-2100). Now Diamond-King, attack Speed Biker!" Diamond-King charged forward and sliced Speed Biker in two (3200-2700). "Now Worm Dimikles will attack Tugroid!" Worm Dimikles crawled forward and stabbed Tugroid repeatedly with its spiked tail, destroying it (2700-1900).

"You just activated Tugroid's effect." Caden said. "When it is destroyed by result of battle, I can special summon one level 4 or lower 'roid' monster from my hand. I special summon Missileroid in attack mode (500/500). This in turn activates the effect of my Missileroid which special summons my other two Missileroids."

"I end my turn." Dai finished.

Caden drew a card. "I play the spell card Missileroid Launcher. This spell card allows me to sacrifice all of my Missileroids to inflect 1500 points of damage to you!" The three Missileroids loaded themselves into the Missileroid Launcher and fired at Shiro and Dai. Two of the Missileroids slammed into Dai while the third hit Shiro (3700-2200). "Now I summon Submarineroid (800/1800). Now my Submarineroid can attack your life points directly!" Submarineroid dropped its torpedo, which buried itself in the ground and dug towards Dai and exploded when it was under him (2200-1600). "Then my Submarineroid switches to defense mode. I end my turn."

Shiro drew a card. "I activate the spell card Reptile Hatching! This allows me to special summon a level 2 or lower reptile monster from my hand. I special summon Worm Apocalypse in attack mode (300/200). But it won't stay long because I sacrificing it to summon **Worm King** (2700/1100)! Normally, Worm King would require tow sacrifices but since the monster I sacrificed was a 'worm' reptile monster I only needed one. But I'm not done yet, for I activate the spell card Double Summon which allows me to normal summon one extra time. I sacrifice my Worm Dimikles to summon **Worm Queen **(2700/1100). Now let the destruction begin! Worm King, attack Hyper Speed Samurai!" Worm King lumbered forward and smashed Hyper Speed Samurai with its fists (1900-1200). "Worm Queen, destroy Submarineroid!" Worm Queen scuttled forward, grabbed Submarineroid in its claws, and ripped it apart. "Now Diamond-King, attack them directly and win this duel!"

"I activate the trap Security Orb!" Dustin shouted. "This trap stops your attack and switches your monster to defense mode."

Shiro swore under his breath. "I end my turn."

Dustin drew a card. "I activate the trap Descending Lost Star! This trap allows me to special summon one synchro monster from my graveyard I defense position. However, its effects are negated, its level is reduced by one, and its defense points become 0." Hyper Speed Samurai appeared on the field in defense mode (2000/0). "Now I summon Sonic Dragon in attack mode (1000/1000)." A dragon with a large jet engine fused to its back appeared on the field. "Now I tune my Sonic Dragon and my Hyper Speed Samurai to synchro summon **Starline Dragon **(3000/2200)!" With a loud roar, a large jet black dragon with a light grey underbelly appeared on the field. The dragon shined slightly like a star on a dark night. "Now I activate Starline Dragon's effect. If I discard a card from my hand, the attack and defense points of one of your monsters are decreased by half!"

"Oh crap." Shiro muttered.

Dustin discarded a card from his hand. "Go, Starline Dragon! Decrease Worm King's attack points by half!" Starline Dragon roared as a dark aura appeared around Worm King, making it wince in pain (2700-1350/1100). "Staline Dragon, attack Worm King and end this duel!"

"Not so fast!" Dai shouted. "I activate my Negate Attack!"

"I activate my trap Royal Decree!" Caden shouted. "This trap negates all face up trap except for itself!" Dai gasped as his Negate Attack shattered. Starline Dragon flew towards Worm King and bit it clean in two (1600-0).

"That concludes our visual demonstration." Anthia said getting up from her seat. "Now if you'll all…" Suddenly, the bell rang. "What? Class is over already? Where does the time go?" The students began to leave. "Students! Do go just yet, I have two announcements. The first announcement is that after Spirit Day, which is tomorrow, we will have promotion exams." Just about every student in the classroom groaned. "But I do have some good news, two days after that we will announce who will represent the school in the National Academy Championship."

* * *

Night had fallen over Duel Academy. The news that the representatives for the school would soon be announced had spread through the school like wildfire. About the only person on the island who didn't care in the slightest was Masaru, for he had bigger things on his mind. He typed codes and formulas into large computer, ignoring the insane ramblings of the teen tied down to a chair on the other side of the room. The door of the lab opened and Masaru turned to see Adelie entering the lab.

"You say you've made a break through in the clone project?" She asked.

Masaru nodded. "Yes. I've found a template that allows me to grow the organs faster. What was a matter of weeks has become a matter of days. However, there are some setbacks."

"Like what?" Adelie asked.

"Well for starters, the subject will not be able to reproduce." Masaru said.

"That doesn't matter. I was going to ask you to sterilize him anyway." Adelie commented.

"But you might not like the next bit." Masaru said. "Due to the fast growth of the organs, the life span if the subject will be cut drastically. Meaning if I were to place the organs in him now, he will be dead in the years."

"Go ahead. Put the organs in him." Adelie said. "I really don't care how long they live." She turned to look at the bound teen. "Now to deals with our friend over there. Where are the other three?"

"I put the four in cryogenic sleep like you ordered." Masaru explained. "The changes you made were drastic and their bodies needed to adjust. His body was the first to stabilize, but when I woke him I found that his mind was highly unstable. It took a lot of sedatives before I could tie him to that chair."

Adelie smiled. "Release him tomorrow night; get Edon and Faron to help you."

"Might I ask what for?" Masaru asked.

Adelie shrugged. "No reason really. His purpose is to cause chaos, discord, and general mayhem."

"Anything else madam?" Masaru asked.

"No." Adelie said as she turned to leave. "Now get to work on that clone."

Masaru bowed. "As you wish, my lady."

* * *

**Dustin's Cards**

**Speed Biker**

**Type:** monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/900)

**Effect: **During your battle phase, you can negate the activation of a trap card.

**Speed Guard**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(0/1900)

**Effect: **Negate one of your opponent's attacks by discarding this card from your hand.

**Sonic Dragon**

**Type: **monster/light/dragon-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **Special summon this card if it is destroyed by a card effect.

**Starline Dragon**

**Type: **monster/dark/dragon-synchro

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(3000/2200)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] Discard one card from your hand. Decrease the attack or defense points of one of your opponent's monster's by half.

**Caden's Cards**

**Tugroid**

**Type: **monster/water/machine-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1200/1400)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed by battle, special summon one level 4 or lower 'roid' monster from your hand.

**Shiro's Cards**

**Reptile Hatching**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **baby reptiles hatching from eggs

**Effect: **Special summon one level 2 or lower reptile monster from your hand.

**Internal Flipping**

**Type: **continuous spell

**Image: **Several facedown cards being flipped faceup.

**Effect: **Once per turn, flip summon one facedown monster even if it was set this turn.

**Dai's Cards**

**Ace Knight-Diamond**

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1300)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed, special summon one monster with 'Diamond' in its name (excluding Destiny Hero Diamond Dude or Diamond Head Dragon).

**Diamond-Ace**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy-tuner

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **none

**Diamond-2 **

**Type: **monster/light/fairy

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(200/200)

**Effect: **none

**Diamond-5**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(500/500)

**Effect: **none

**Diamond-6**

**Type:** monster/light/fairy

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(600/600)

**Effect: **none

**Diamond-9**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(900/900)

**Effect: **none

**Diamond-10**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **none

**Joker**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **When this card is used in a synchro summoning when the tuner is 'Diamond-Ace', 'Hearts-Ace', 'Spades-Ace', or 'Clubs-Ace' the level of this card will automatically fulfill the level requirements of the synchro monster.

**Diamond-King**

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-synchro

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] This card gains 300 attack points for each 'Diamond' monster in your graveyard (excluding Destiny Hero Diamond Dude or Diamond head dragon).

**Pick A Card**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **A man holding out several cards while a second man is choosing one.

**Effect: **Take five level 4 or lower monsters from your deck and show them to your opponent. Your opponent then selects on of the monsters. The selected monster is summoned and the other four are discarded.


	16. Deep Insanity

The most exciting night at Duel Academy had arrived, Spirit Day. The classes had been let out earlier to allow staff members and student volunteers to finish setting up for the festivities. Most of the other students were getting into their costumes. Chris was one of these students. He was looking at himself in his mirror as he made the final alterations on his Dark Magician costume. He even had his hair temporarily dyed to resemble the famous spellcaster.

Chris stepped out of his room. He took a look back at his duel disk that he had left on his table. Chris would have brought it along, but it would fit in his arm with his costume on. Chris joined the large group of fellow Ra Yellow students in costume that were on their way to the Spirit Day festive. Several small stands had been setup right outside of the main building. These stands were hosts to games, concessions, and other miscellaneous activities.

Chris walked through the large group of students. It seemed like every student was here, which was probably true. "Dang it." Chris muttered to himself. "We should have decided on a place to meet." Chris walked to a nearby bench and stood on it to get a better look. He saw Caden, dressed as a mechanic of some sort, and walked over to him. "Hey Caden, have you seen Rubye?"

"Yes I have." Caden replied, turning to face Chris. "She's over at the dueling arena."

"Caden, what are you supposed to be anyway?" Chris asked.

"A monster called Roid Mechanic." Caden replied. Caden was instantly engaged in a conversation with three students dressed as a Level Warrior, Harpie Lady, and a Battle Ox. Chris walked through the crowd towards the dueling arena. There was a duel already in progress. Two Obelisk Blues were dueling each other, on dressed as a Elemental Hero Sparkman and the other dressed as a Sonic Shooter.

"Hey Chris, over here!" Chris heard a familiar voice. He saw Rubye dressed as a X-Saber Anu Piranha setting at a table. He went to sit with her. "Sorry if I've been making you wait."

"Not at all." Rubye replied. "I haven't been here long anyway." She took a sip from a drink that she had.

"So…." Chris started, trying to think of something to say. His thoughts were interrupted by a large explosion from the dueling field. The Sonic Shooter was still on the field while the Elemental Hero Sparkman was picking himself off the ground.

Suddenly there was an announcement. "Will duelist with token 34316 please report to the dueling arena?"

Rubye picked up a yellow token that had been sitting on the table. "That's me! Sorry Chris, we'll have to talk later." Rubye ran off towards the duel arena.

Chris growled in annoyance. "Distractions and interferences. That's all I get every time I try to talk to her!"

* * *

Meanwhile, three teens were lurking in the forest nearby. The first was dressed in regular uniform, one dressed as a Fiend Roar Deity Luri, and the last was tied to a chair. The in normal clothing grunted as he pulled the chair through the foliage. "Yea know, you could help me Faron!"

"Why should I!" Faron shot back. He worked to untangle his plastic wings that were part of his costume. "Besides, I've got problems of my own here." The third teen how was tied to the chair said nothing.

"This should be close enough." Edon said as he slammed the chair down in a small clearing. Faron walked forward and place a duel disk and a large dagger in front of the bound teen. "Stand clear Faron." Edon said as he grabbed the ropes that bound the teen in his hand. He pulled the ropes until the broke. The teen fell forward on the ground. He picked up the dagger and took it for its scabbard.

"Yes, this is a nice blade." he said. "Nice and sharp. I can make lots of blood with is." Suddenly, he jumped up and lunged at Edon. Edon grabbed the teen's arm, turned him around, and got him in a headlock.

"A crazy man doesn't think." Edon said softly. The teen fell silent and stopped moving. "Well, at least Masaru's stop command actually worked."

"Would you care to explain?" Faron asked.

"Well, when Masaru was messing around with him, he put in a code sentence so that we could give him instructions that he would follow." Edon explained. "So be quit so I can give them. Now listen you, your name is Nekkyou."

"That's not even a name!" Faron interrupted.

"Shut up!" Edon said, hitting Faron in the face. Faron fell over and slammed into a tree. "Your mission is to duel people and to cause as much pain as possible. You are not allowed to go after Lady Adelie, Myrine, Faron, Masaru, or myself."

"Understood." Nekkyou said in a monotone voice.

Edon nodded. "Good. The crazy man doesn't question." Nekkyou fell forward on his face. He then got up, clipped the duel disk onto his arm, and ran off towards the festive.

* * *

The duel between Rubye and the Obelisk Blue was starting to heat up. Rubye had two facedowns and Mermaid Shark Tamer on her field. The Obelisk Blue had no facedowns and an Archfiend of Gilfer. It was Rubye's turn.

"I summon Mystic Rainbow Fish in attack mode (900/300)." Rubye said as the small fish with scales colored in a rainbow pattern appeared on the field. Chris was watching the duel from the sidelines, next to a table that had several snacks on it. "Now for my Mystic Rainbow Fish's effect!" Rubye continued. "My Mystic Rainbow Fish can attack your life points directly!" Mystic Rainbow Fish flew into the air and slammed into the Obelisk Blue's chest. Unfortunately, the force of the blow caused the Obelisk Blue to fall of the platform and land on the buffet table. The table wasn't a long table, but several short tables strung together. When the Obelisk Blue fell on the table, it caused the contents of several of the tables to fly into the air. Unfortunately, several lit candles flew into the air. One of which, hit the back of Chris's costume, setting it on fire.

Chris yelled in shock and fell to the ground. Remembering the stop-drop-roll technique that he had been taught as a child, Chris rolled back and forth in the dirt. Suddenly, something splashed over him. Someone had dumped a bowl of punch on him. The fire was out, and Chris was burnt, covered in dirt, and soaking wet. Several other students and gathered around Chris, who was now lying on his stomach.

"It doesn't look bad." A student said as he knelt down next to Chris. "It only burnt the costume."

Chris picked himself up off the ground. "Dang it. This costume was expensive."

"Chris are you alright?" Rubye asked, liking down anxiously at Chris.

Chris gave her the thumbs up. "Yes, I'm fine. You continue your duel, because I'm got to go change." Chris walked off towards the Ra Yellow Dorm.

Rubye was relieved that Chris was alright. She had never been so scared in all her life. But he was fine and she had a duel to complete. "I think I'll end my turn." She said.

The Obelisk Blue drew a card. "I summon Snipe Hunter in attack mode (1500/900). Now I activate the effect of my Snipe Hunter. It makes me discard a card and roll a die. If the resulting roll doesn't land on 1 or 6, I can destroy one of your cards." The Obelisk Blue discarded a card and a large die appeared. The die flew up into the air, and landed back on the ground, rolled a few feet, and stopped moving. It had landed on 3. "Yes! Now the card I chose to destroy is your Mermaid Shark Tamer!" Snipe Hunter, giggling madly, leveled its blaster at Mermaid Shark Tamer and fired. Mermaid Shark Tamer shattered once the beam hit her. "I now switch my Archfiend of Gilfer to attack mode. Now Snipe Hunter will destroy your Mystic Rainbow Fish!" Snipe Hunter blaster Mystic Rainbow Fish to pieces. "Now my Archfiend of Gilfer will attack your life points directly!"

What happened next happened so quickly that no one had time to react. A black sphere shot out of the forest and positioned itself in the center of the dueling field. The black sphere expanded to several times its original size, engulfing the dueling field and the area around it. Rubye was blinded by the darkness until the darkness itself started to expand. So now Rubye, the Obelisk Blue she had been dueling, and several other people were standing in a large hallow area. The darkness of the dome surrounding them seemed to flow and swirl around them like water.

"Were the heck are we?" someone asked.

"It is impossible to tell were you are." Everyone turned around to see a figure emerge from the shadows behind. He sneered at them as he advanced. "But, hahahahaha, if you'll want to escape, you'll have to duel me."

* * *

Chris pulled of his burnt Dark Magician costume. While he hadn't been burned, the costume was totally ruined. He jammed his ruined costume into his trashcan. The thing smelled horrible, which was a mix of smoke and punch. Chris changed into his regular uniform, clipped his duel disk to his arm, and walked out. He was stunned to see the black dome covering were he had just been, it being visible even from the Ra Yellow Dorm. He ran to the dome. "What happened?" he asked a nearby student.

"I don't know!" was the student's panicked reply. "It just came out of nowhere. It swallowed up everyone on and around that dueling field."

"Rubye's in there." Chris muttered to himself. Without thinking, without giving any thoughts to the possible consequences, Chris stepped into the black dome.

* * *

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha,!" Nekkyou laughed. His head swiveled on his shoulders to look at all of the bound students. "Out of all of you, no one could beat me!" All of the students, including Rubye, had been defeated.

"Shut you, you maniac!" Rubye screamed.

Nekkyou smiled wickedly at her. He started giggling. "Ah you, you did the best of all of these people." He pulled out his dagger and licked the blade. "I think I'll have my fun with you first." Nekkyou walked towards Rubye. He ripped off the sleeve of her costume. "I find immense pleasure in the pain and suffering of other people. So be sure to scream nice and loud."

"You'll get no such pleasure from me." Rubye said defiantly.

Nekkyou laughed. "Well see about that." He place the dagger tip at the top of her arm and pushed in. He didn't push hard, but the cut was deep enough to bleed and cause Rubye to wince in pain. He then began to push down, making a long cut. Rubye cried out in pain. "See I told you…." Nekkyou stopped mid-sentence. "Another one has arrived." Nekkyou turned to face the new person. Rubye managed to get a look past Nekkyou to see who had come. "Chris!"

"Rubye!" Chris shouted back. "You monster! What have you done?!"

"Nothing, just having a little fun." Nekkyou snickered. "And I'm about to have some more!" Nekkyou activated his duel disk. "If you want me to free these people, you'll have to beat me in a duel."

"Alright, I accept!" Chris said as he activated his duel disk. "Duel!" Nekkyou and Chris said in unison.

"I'll start us off!" Nekkyou said as he drew a card. "I summon Crazy Skull in attack mode (0/0)." A small, weathered skull appeared on the field. It laughed crazily. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magician of Pain in attack mode (1400/1900). Now Magician of Pain will attack your Crazy Skull!" Magician of Pain charged forward, swinging its staff into the air. Magician of Pain slammed its staff on the skull, shattering it (NLP: 4000-2600). "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Nekkyou drew a card. "I activate the trap Call of the Haunted! This allows me to special summon my Crazy Skull back to the field. Now I activate the spell Infernal Reckless Summon! This allows me to special summon my other two Crazy Skulls!" Two more Cray Skulls appeared next to the first. "Now you're allowed to special summon any other Magician of Pains you might have in your deck."

"I only have one." Chris muttered.

"Too bad." Nekkyou laughed. "Because now I sacrifice two of my Crazy Skulls to summon my Dark Tuner-Catastroge in attack mode (0/0)!"

"Dark Tuner?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, they're like regular tuners, only in reverse." Nekkyou said. "Moving on, I activate the effects of the two Crazy Skulls in my graveyard. If I remove them from play, I can special summon two level 3 monsters from my deck." Nekkyou removed the two Crazy Skulls from his duel disk and took two cards from his deck. "I special summon two D.D. Crazy Beasts (1400/1400). Now I tune my level 8 Dark Tuner-Catastroge with my two level 3 D.D. Crazy Beasts and my level 1 Crazy Skull to dark synchro summon **Insanity Being **(0/0)!" A long, tube-shaped creature appeared on the field. It was a light gray color and transparent. "One more thing, when Dark Tuner-Catastroge is used in a Synchro summon I can destroy one card on your field. So say goodbye to that facedown card." Chris's facedown card shattered. "Now, Insanity Being will attack your Magician of Pain!"

"Okay, so what is this supposed to accomplish?" Chris asked. Several long appendages shot out of Insanity Being and sped towards Magician of Pain. They pieced Magician of Pain, shot through it, and slammed into Chris. Chris fell forward on his knees as the appendages slid back into Insanity Being (CLP: 4000-3500). 'What a minute,' Chris thought. 'Holograms aren't supposed to hurt like that!' "Care to explain what just happened?"

"That was the effect of my Insanity Being." Nekkyou said. "First off, it can't be destroyed as a result of battle and I take no battle damage. Secondly, when it does battle my opponent will lose 500 life points. I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I set one card and end my turn."

"Not much you can do is there." Nekkyou said as he drew a card. "I activate the spell card I just drew, Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two cards." Nekkyou drew two cards. "I summon Mad Trap Professor in attack mode (1000/1000)." A disheveled man with a large smile on his face appeared on the field. He was wearing a lab coat and had pockets stuffed with strange tools. "Next I equip my Insanity Being with the equip card Raregold Armor. This equip card makes it so that the only card you can attack is my Insanity Being. Now my Insanity being with attack Magician of Pain again!" Several appendages shot from Insanity Being again and sped towards Magician of Pain.

"I activate Negate Attack!" Chris shouted. "This card stops your attack and…"

"It would if it wasn't for my Mad Trap Professor." Nekkyou interrupted. "Once per turn, this guy can negate the activation of a trap card." Laughing madly, Mad Trap Professor pulled out a tool resembling a small chainsaw and sliced apart Chris's Negate Attack. Insanity Beings appendages shot through Magician of Pain and slammed into Chris (CLP: 3500-3000).

Chris clutched at his chest. "Dang it, why do your attacks hurt some much?! Normal holograms don't do that much physical damage!"

Nekkyou smirked. "This is a duel of shadows. Unlike normal duels, the monsters are real! That means that the damage is real. In other words, this duel will be like no other duel you've had before."

"Yeah, I'll make a note of it." Chris said as he drew a card. Chris sighed inwardly. 'Curse my bad luck! Nothing in my hand can help me!' "I end my turn."

Nekkyou drew a card. "I summon Mad Spell Professor in attack mode (1000/1000)." A man similar to Mad Trap Professor appeared on the field. The only difference was that Mad Spell Professor wore wizard's robes. "As you can probably tell, Mad Spell Professor is similar to Mad Trap Professor except it negates spells. Now my Insanity Being will attack your Magician of Pain!" The appendages shot from Insanity Being, pierced Magician of Pain, and slammed into Chris (CLP: 3000-2500). "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. 'Wait a minute, there's something I can do. It's a bit of a long shot but it just might work!' "I activate the spell card Magical Dimension!"

"Wrong!" Nekkyou shouted. "My Mad Spell Professor will negate it!" Lasers shot from Mad Spell Professor's eyes, sliced Magical Dimension in half.

Chris smiled. "I was hoping you'd do that, because I activate the spell card Lightning Vortex! This requires that I discard a card from my hand, destroy all of your faceup monsters in return!"

"Crap!" Nekkyou shouted as bolts of lightning rain down, destroying Insanity Being, Mad Trap Professor, and Mad Spell Professor.

"Now that your field is clear, I thing I'll summon Sage of Spell Absorption in attack mode (1500/1600). Both of my monsters, attack Nekkyou directly!" Magician of Pain and Sage of Spell Absorption ran forward and bashed Nekkyou with their staffs simultaneously (NLP: 2600-0). The force of the attack knocked Nekkyou into the air, and landed on his back a few feet away. The instant Nekkyou's life points hit 0, the shadow dome around them started to disperse. Chris moved slowly over to Rubye. He examined the long cut on Rubye's arm. "This cut doesn't look deep, but it needs to be bandaged soon." Bolts of pain shot throught Chris's chest, causing him to wince and clutch at his chest.

"Chris what's wrong, are your ribs broken?" Rubye asked.

"I'm not sure." Chris replied. "But they hurt a lot." Several other students started to gather around Chris, Rubye, and the other students who had been trapped in the shadow dome. "But now, what to do with that maniac." Suddenly, Nekkyou sat up strait and started laughing. Then black ooze started to shoot from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. Nekkyou's laugh ended in a gurgle and he fell facedown in the dirt.

* * *

"I'd like to thank you all for coming on such a short notice." Chancellor Arthur Yimagia said as he observed the teachers sitting at the table. "As you probably are all aware, there was an incident this evening during the Spirit Day celebration. On of our students attack several other students, cause significant injuries to Rubye Dazai and Christopher Saigo."

Anthia, who was sitting at the other end of the table, jumped from her seat and slammed her hands on the table. "What!? Chris was involved?!"

"Don't worry, he's fine." Chancellor Arthur said calmly. "Aside from the fact that he has some large bruises, and he will be in pain for awhile."

Anthia sat down on her chair and glared at Arthur. "Why wasn't I informed?"

"I didn't have time." Chancellor Arthur replied. "But back to the business at hand. The student, calling himself Nekkyou, is actually Eiji Mori. If you recall, he is one of the four students that went missing a few days ago."

"Where is Eiji being held?" Professor Aaron.

"In medical confinement." Chancellor Arthur said. "The nurse is running some tests and should be done shortly." There was a knock at the door, and the nurse walked in. "Nurse, what were the results of the tests?"

"Besides some minor injuries from his duel with Mr. Saigo, he is in perfect health." The Nurse looked at a clipboard that she held. "He regained consciousness during the examination. He claims that he doesn't remember anything of the duels today or anything about his disappearance. Mental tests I ran gives credence to his statement."

"So he has amnesia then." Professor Ginsea commented.

"It appears so." The nurse said.

"It's a dead end then." Chancellor Arthur muttered. "Well ladies and gentlemen; we're back to square one."

* * *

Masaru sat hunched over a computer in his dark lab. Masaru had managed to tape the duel between Chris and Nekkyou using a device that that resembled a large spider with a small camera on its back. He watched the footage back to back. "Too much reliance on monster cards." Masaru rolled over to another set of computers. The computers were hooked to several large cylinders that contain Masaru's other three subjects. He smiled as he started to type codes into the computers. "Time to make the necessary adjustments."

* * *

**Rubye's Card**

**Mystic Rainbow Fish**

**Type: **monster/water/fish-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(900/300)

**Effect: **This card can attack your opponent's life points directly.

**Nekkyou's Cards**

**Crazy Skull**

**Type:** monster/dark/zombie-effect

**Level: **1

**Stats: (**0/0)

**Effect: **When this card is in the graveyard, you can remove it from play to special summon a level 3 or lower monster from your deck. That monster is removed from play at the end of the turn.

**Mad Trap Professor**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level:** 4

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **Once per turn, you can negate the activation of your opponent's trap card.

**Mad Spell Professor**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1000/1000)

**Effect: **Once per turn, negate the activation of one of your opponent's spell cards.

**Insanity Being **

**Type: **monster/dark/feind-dark synchro

**Level: **-1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **This card cannot be destroyed as a result of battle, and you take no battle damage involving this card. When this card attacks one of your opponent's monsters, you opponent loses 500 life points.


	17. Exam Day

Chris had spent the night in the medical room of the nurse's office. The reason for this was so the nurse could observe Chris's injuries and to determine if they were worse than they appeared. As of the moment, the nurse was examining the large bruises on Chris's chest.

"Well Mr. Saigo, it looks like you don't have any broken or cracked ribs." The nurse handed Chris is shirt. "You need to take it easy for awhile because those bruises are going to hurt for awhile." Chris put his shirt on. While he had no problem move his arms, the motions themselves caused a lot of pain.

"Will I still be able to duel?" Chris asked.

The nurse laughed. "Of course you will, just wait here for a second." The nurse went back into her office and came back will a small, red duel disk. "Until you've completely healed, you'll have to duel with this duel disk." Chris clipped the duel disk to his arm. It was significantly lighter then his regular duel disk. "These special duel disks are designed to be used be people with injuries like your own. Its lighter than a normal duel disk and it modifies the holograms in a duel to not inflect physical damage."

Chris made his way to the door. He took a quick look at the clock in the nurse's office. He needed to get to Professor Ginsea's class in five minutes or else he'd be late. Chris cursed under his breath as he ran towards the class room. For starters, the running was causes a lot pain for his injuries. Secondly, promotion exams were today and he had been unable to study. He made it to Ginsea's class with less than a minute to spare. His chest burning with pain, Chris sat himself down near the middle of classroom in a row closer to the back.

"Alright settle down class." Professor Ginsea walked to the front of the room. He was holding large stack of paper under one arm. "Now as you all know, today is promotion exam day. Also, as you all know, to actually move onto the next rank you have to score a 95% or higher on both the test and the duel portions. However, we are doing things a bit different. This year you can chose to duel one of the higher ranked duelists of the next dorm, and if you win you automatically move on to the next dorm. If you want to participate, just check the box on your test." Professor Ginsea started to pass out the test.

When Chris got the test, he saw two small boxes at the top of the paper. On box said 'I want to duel in the old program'. The second one said 'I want to duel in the new program'. Chris thought for a moment, and decided to duel under the new program. Then he started the test. The first question was 'What duelist was famous for using insect monsters and for cheating? He was also the first to lose in the Duelist Kingdom Tournament'. Chris immediately wrote Weevil Underwood. After several questions, 'Name a dark synchro monster' came up. As Chris wrote Insanity Being, a particularly painful twinge crossed his chest. Next came 'What kind of cards did Joey Wheeler use?'. Chris wrote 'warriors and luck themed cards.' This went on for about an hour and a half for there were 300 questions to the test.

Chris turned in his test and made his way painfully to the auditorium. Several students were already there. Chris sat himself down to watch the duels, wincing as random bolts of pain shot across his chest. Suddenly, Dustin walked up.

"Hey Chris! It's good to see you up and about again." Dustin said as he gave Chris a friendly pat on the back. Chris grunted in pain and slumped forward, clutching his chest. "Whoops, sorry about that Chris."

"You're forgiven." Chris said straitening up. "How did you and Caden do?"

Dustin shrugged. "Caden's still doing his test, and I just finished dueling. I won the duel but I can guarantee that I failed the test."

"By the way Dustin, have you seen Rubye anywhere?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, but don't try to get near her." Dustin said. "Ever since yesterday her sisters have been watching her like a hawk and chasing off anyone who gets close."

"Well Mr. Saigo please report to the dueling field." Came an announcement over the intercom.

"I got to go." Chris said standing up. "Wish Caden good luck for me." Chris walked down to the dueling field. Standing off to the side was Anthia. She was holding a clipboard and a small blue pen. She gave Chris a concerned look.

"Are you sure you're up to this?" Anthia asked.

"I've never been better." Chris said, but he winced as several more bolts of pain crossed his chest. "Scratch that, I'm relatively okay."

"If you're sure." Anthia said as she looked down at her clipboard. "Your opponent should be here any minute. Oh wait, she's here right now." An Obelisk blue walked forward towards the dueling field. Chris examined her for a moment. She was thin, a little bit shorter than him, and had brown hair the hung around her shoulders. But Chris found her icy blue eyes unnerving.

"Lets get on with it." She said softly as she activated her duel disk. This in itself surprised Chris. He had been expecting some harsh, egotistical remark. She shuffled her deck and drew her hand.

"Can I get your name before we start?" Chris asked while he shuffled his deck.

"Adelie." She said. "I'll start this duel." She drew a card. "I place one monster in facedown defense mode. I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Rapid-Fire Magician in attack mode (1600/1200). Rapid-Fire Magician will attack your facedown monster!" Rapid-Fire Magician aimed its twin staffs and fired multi-colored spheres at the facedown. The monster flipped up to reveal some plant monster before the spheres slammed into it and it was destroyed.

"The monster you just destroyed was Horseytail." Adelie said. "When it is destroyed in battle, a Horseytail token gets summoned to your field in defense mode." The token appeared next to Rapid-Fire Magician (0/0).

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." Chris said.

Adelie drew a card. "I activate the spell card Reload, which allows me to shuffle my hand back into my deck and draw a new hand." Adelie shuffled her hand into her deck and drew four cards. "One of monster I just drew was Rose Fairy. When Rose Fairy gets added to my hand by monster effect, spell, or trap I get to special summon it (600/1200). But now I sacrifice my Rose Fairy to summon Rose Tentacles in attack mode (2200/1200). Now my Rose Tentacles will attack your Rapid-Fire Magician!" One of Rose Tentacles' tentacles wrapped around Rapid-Fire Magician, lifted it into the air, and slammed it into the ground destroying it (CLP: 4000-3400). "There are a couples things I should mention. My Rose Tentacles gains an additional attack for every plant monster on your field and you lose 300 life points for each plant monster it destroys. Also, when that Horseytail token is destroyed you have to discard a card from your hand. Rose Tentacles, destroy the Horseytail Token!" Rose Tentacles' tentacles wrapped around Horseytail and crushed it (CLP: 3400-3100). "Now discard your card." Chris examined his cards for a moment and discarded a card. "I end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the trap Spellcaster Apprenticeship! This trap allows me to special summon a level 3 or lower spellcaster. I special summon Magical Plant Mandragola (500/200). But I now sacrifice my Magical Plant Mandragola to summon Chaos Command Magician in attack mode (2400/1900). Chaos Command Magician will attack your Rose Tentacles!" Chaos Command Magician fired a stream of magical energy at Rose Tentacles, destroying it (ALP: 4000-3800).

"I activate the trap card Thorns of the Demon Rose!" Adelie said. "This trap card causes your monster to lose 1000 attack points since it destroyed a plant type monster (2400-1400/1900)."

"I place one card facedown and end my turn." Chris said.

Adelie drew a card. "I summon Twilight Rose Knight in attack mode (1000/1000). When this card is normal summoned, I get to special summon a level 4 or lower plant monster from my hand."

"So basically it's a plant version of Marauding Captain." Chris commented.

"Yes." Adelie replied. "I special summon Botanical Lion in attack mode (1600-1900/2000). My Botanical Lion gains 300 attack points for every plant type monster I control. Now my Botanical Lion will attack your Chaos Command Magician!" Botanical Lion roared and charged forward, biting at Chaos Command Magician.

"I activate the trap Widespread Ruin!" Chris shouted. "This trap card destroys the monster with the most attack points on your side of the field!" Botanical Lion stopped in its tracks then exploded.

"I place one card and end my turn." Adelie said.

Chris drew a card. "I sacrifice my Chaos Command Magician to summon Dark Red Enchanter in attack mode (1700/2200). When my Dark Red Enchanter is normal summon it gains two spell counters. Then it gets 300 attack points for each spell counter on it (1700-2300/2200). Dark Red Enchanter, attack her Twilight Rose Knight!" Dark Red Enchanter ran forward and bashed Twilight Rose Knight with its staff (ALP: 3800-2500).

"I activate the trap Damage Condenser!" Adelie shouted. "If I discard a card from my hand I can special summon a monster with attack points equal to the amount of damage that I just took. I think I'll special summon my Soul Rose (1200/1600)." A small white rose with several ghost-like lights dancing around it.

"I end my turn by playing a facedown." Chris said.

Adelie drew a card. "I play the spell card Double Summon, which allows me to normal summon twice this turn. So I summon Copy Plant (0/0) and Evil Thorn (100/300). Now I activate Evil Thorn's effect! I can sacrifice my Evil Thorn to inflect 300 points of damage to you." Evil Thorn's pod exploded sending several thorns fling towards Chris. Instead of slamming into Chris, they phased through him (CLP: 3100-2800). "Due to my Evil Thorn's second effect, I get two more Evil Thorns!" Two Evil Thorns sprouted in front of Adelie. "But they won't stay long because I tune my level 1 Copy Plant, two level 1 Evil Thorns, and my level 4 Soul Roses. Synchro summon, **Black Rose Dragon **(2400/1800)." The dragon appeared behind Adelie. It roared loudly as the field was covered by a storm of rose pedals. "I activate the equip spell card Thorn of Malice and equip it to Black Rose Dragon." Black Rose Dragon growled as several thorns started to grow out of its skin. "This spell card increases the attack points of my Black Rose dragon by 600 (2400-3000/1800). I would have done that later, but I know that your Dark Red Enchanter gains a spell counter for each spll activated (2300-2600/2200). Which is precisely why I'm activating one of Black Rose Dragon's effects. If I remove a plant monster from my graveyard, in this case my Rose Tentacles, I can reduce the attack points of your Dark Red Enchanter to 0."

"Dang." Chris muttered as several vines shot from Black Rose Dragon and wrapped around Dark Red Enchanter (2600-0/2200).

"Now Black Rose Dragon, attack his Dark Red Enchanter and end this duel!" Adelie shouted. Black Rose Dragon roared and shot a beam of purple energy mixed with rose pedals at Dark Red Enchanter. "Although your Dark Red Enchanter won't be destroyed due to Thorn of Malice, it doesn't matter at this point." Black Rose Dragon's attack hit Dark Red Enchanter and shot through it towards Chris. Before the attack hit, a red barrier appeared around Chris protecting him from the attack (CLP: 2800-0). The holograms disappeared and Adelie walked off without a word.

Chris shrugged at his misfortune. 'That is a disappointment, but I'll have another chance next year.' He looked down at his red duel disk and thankful that it worked. Chris spent the next hour watching the other students duel. The results of the exam came out later that day. Chris was some-what relieved by the fact that Caden and Dustin weren't moving on either.

* * *

Masaru sat hunched over his computer, and position and location that he was getting very used too. Ever since that night he came under Adelie's control, Masaru had spent most of his time in the lab in the abandon dorm. The only times he ever left were to go to classes, eat, and sleep. As he sat putting codes into the computer, a shadow crept across the ceiling towards Masaru. Suddenly the shadow jumped from the ceiling, landed behind Masaru, and screeched loudly.

Masaru jumped. "Ah, what have I said about doing that Osore?!"

Osore laughed as he striated up. "I can't help it! It just comes to me naturally." Masaru had only awoken Osore about an hour ago and he had already reached the end of his limit. 'Well, at lest it's better that dealing with Faron' Masaru said to himself. Just then Faron walked into the room. Seconds before Faron came into the room, Osore had jumped to the ceiling again.

"Hey Masaru, I got the stuff for you." Faron said. In his hands, he held a duel disk and a deck. He had a confused look on his face as he looked around the room. "Who were you talking to?" Osore jumped down again and screeched. Faron reaction was similar to Masaru's, only with a lot more cursing. "Masaru, who the heck is this guy?"

"This is Osore." Masaru said, not looking up from his computer. "His mind was the first to stabilize so I woke him up. He may like to scare people a lot but at least he's better company than Nekkyou was."

"Where do you come up with these weird names for these people?" Faron asked.

"I don't know. I just come up with them." Masaru said as he chuckled to himself. "Those cards and that duel disk are for Osore so let him have them." Faron slammed the deck into the duel disk and held it out for Osore to take. Unfortunately for Faron, Osore had jumped up to the ceiling. He swung down from the ceiling, grabbed the duel disk, and swung back up. Faron jumped back and swore again. "If you're going to swear like that than leave because Adelie will be here any minute."

The door opened again and Adelie walked in. "I'm already here. You said that one was ready Masaru?" Osore jumped from the ceiling and land in a bowing position in front of her.

"You called my lady?" Osore said.

"Yes." Adelie said, showing no reaction to Osore's sudden appearance. "There is a certain duelist I want you to duel. His name is Christopher Saigo. I want you to us any methods you deem necessary to push him to his absolute limit. I think he has a girlfriend so try and play that angle. Now get to it!"

Osore got up from his bow and left. "May I ask why you show such interest in this duelist?" Masaru asked.

"He's the duelist who defeated Nekkyou." Adelie said. "I just dueled him for that stupid exam thing. He seems like an interesting prospect for recruitment. Now there was something else you wanted to show me besides Osore."

"Yes. The clone is ready." Masaru walked over the cylinder shaped machine which held the clone. The capsule containing the clone slid out of the machine. The clone now had a normal appearance. They only thing that distinguished himself from a normal person was his white hair. "I know for a fact that all of his body systems will work the instant I wake him up except one, the respiratory system. Since he has been in that machine I've been feeding oxygen to him and not letting him breathe on his own."

"It's time to find out then." Adelie said.

Masaru nodded. He looked down and the clone and flipped a switch. There was a loud hissing noise as the capsule opened. Now that one could get a clear look at the clone, one would notice that several IVs were attached to his body. Masaru looked down nervously at the clone. His hand was still on the switch, ready to turn the machine back on. There was a long silence. Suddenly the clone gasped, coughed, and started to breathe. Masaru clapped his hands together. "Phase 1 is a complete success. Now I can start on Phase 2."

"How long will it be until he is ready?" Adelie asked.

"About one week." Masaru replied. "I still have to program his brain to be able to do the most basic functions. The only things he can do are the functions that the brain controls automatically."

"Right then." Adelie said. She turned and left the room. "I'll leave you to your work."

* * *

Chris was in a monstrous amount of pain has he entered his room. Although he had been taking it easy and some aspirin, his chest was just burning with pain. He sat down in a chair, waiting for some of the pain to go away. Suddenly his PDA started to beep, telling him he had an e-mail. Chris took out his PDA and read the e-mail.

'Dear Chris,

I didn't have time last time I saw you and I don't have much time to type this e-mail. I'd like to say thank-you for what you did last night. I'm sorry I wasn't able thanky-you in person. I hope you feel better soon.

From Rubye

P.S. I passed my exams! I'm an Obelisk Blue now!'

Below the writing was a picture of Rubye in her new Obelisk Blue uniform. Chris smiled and typed back 'congratulations'. Chris managed to pull off his uniform without a lot pain, and laid down on the bed. He was tired and before sleep overcame him, Chris muttered "I really hope I won't have to do that again."

* * *

**Soul Rose**

**Type: **monster/earth/plant-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1200/1600)

**Effect: **Once per turn, select one effect plant type monster in graveyard. Until the end of the turn that monster's effect becomes this monster's effect.

**Thorns of the Demon Rose **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a dragon will several thorns stabbed in its skin.

**Effect: **Activate this card when your opponent destroys a plant monster you control. Your opponent's monster loses 1000 attack points.


	18. Paralyzing Fear

Rubye stepped out of her bathroom, wearing a long light blue nightgown. She looked around her large new room. She still couldn't believe that she had actually made it to Obelisk Blue. She smiled, but it soon faded. _'Maybe I'm being too selfish' _she thought to herself. She knew she wasn't, but it was not to think like that. There was a small creak and a light gust of wind. The wind was standing open. "I thought I closed that." Rubye said to herself as she closed it.

Suddenly a gloved hand slapped over her mouth. Something flashed by her face and see felt a sharp pain in her neck. Out of her peripheral vision, she saw a small syringe in her neck. Rubye tried to get free of her assailer, but his grip tightened. A curious sensation started to spread through Rubye's body. A cold numbness was covering her. She found that she was losing control of her arms and legs. She fell forward, but was caught she hit the ground. She tried to scream, but she found that she couldn't move her mouth. Rubye was blindfolded and swung over her assailer's shoulder. Her late thought before losing consciousness was _'I'm being kidnapped!'

* * *

_

Chris was surrounded by darkness. Either way he looked he saw darkness. _'Maybe my eyes are closed'_ he thought. No, that couldn't be. Chris looked down and he could see himself. It wasn't his vision, it was just darkness. _'This has got to be a dream'_ Chris thought. _"But it's not like any other I can remember having'_. "Where am I?" Chris said out loud.

Suddenly there was a bright flash of light. Chris shielded his eyes as they tried to adjust to this new light. The light started to move away from Chris. Chris got a clear look at the light that had moved a far distance away from him. He realized that this light was making a stone pathway, and that he was now standing on the path it had just made. He looked back to where the light had been, but it was now gone. Chris walked forward. As he walked, something started to appear out of the gloom of the darkness. The thing gained more detail as Chris moved forward until the thing was fully distinguishable.

It was a circular tower. It was made of black stone that shined even in the absence of light. The tower had several windows, but all of them were covered with shutters. Chris looked up to see the top of the tower, but it disappeared as it ascended into the darkness. Chris started to walk towards the tower. Suddenly the ground began to shake violently. Chris fell to the ground, trying not to fall off the path. The silence was broken by loud cracking noises and Chris looked up to see several large cracks appear in the tower. Then it exploded. Large chunks flew in all directions. Several hit close to where Chris was laying.

Suddenly there was a loud roar. A pillar of black flame erupted from where to tower had been. The flame started to swirl as if it were a tornado. Chris was horrified and too scared to move. There was another loud roar, and the flame started to collapse on it self. The flame reached ground level and started to run along the path. The flames raced towards Chris. Chris flung his arms in front of himself to protect him.

_CRASH_

Chris sat up bolt straight. At first he thought the crash had been part of the dream. He looked around his dark room. To things came crashing to his attention at once. First was that he was covered in shards of glass, second was the fiery pain that was crossing his chest. Chris jumped from his bed and looked out of the shattered remains of his window. In the darkness, he could see someone was standing on the branch of a nearby tree. _Whoosh._ Something sailed past Chris's head and buried itself in the wall with a loud _thump._

"Come and get me!" The figure shouted as it swung away in the branches. Chris grabbed his shoes, clipped his duel disk to his arm, and headed for the door. He stopped as a thought struck him. He ran to his bedside table. Picking up his PDA, he typed a shot e-mail and sent it off. Moving as quietly as he could, Chris left the Ra Yellow Dorm and gave chase to his attacker. Fortunately for Chris, his attacker hadn't got far. Chris managed to partly catch up with his attacker as he swung from tree to tree.

"Get back here you little monkey!" Chris shouted. The person ignored Chris's taught. The person led Chris further into the forest. Suddenly the figure disappeared. Chris ran towards where he last saw the person, and ran into a small clearing. Chris stopped to catch his breath. He groaned as he became aware of the pain in his chest. He looked around the clearing. It appeared to be empty. "Dang, I lost him." Chris muttered. Suddenly the clearing with flooded with light.

"What the..!?" Chris yelled in surprise. There was a quit _whoosh_ and pain erupted from Chris's right knee. Chris screamed in pain and he fell to one knee. Chris's eyes were shut as pain radiated from his knee. Chris managed to open his eyes. A long cylindrical object was sticking out of his skin just above his knee. He felt something warm running down his leg, which he guessed to be his own blood. Chris managed to rise to his feet again, causing more pain to race through his knee.

Then something jumped from the trees and landed in the middle of the clearing. Chris was able to get a clear look at it. It was teen that looked a few years older than him. He was wearing camouflaged shirt and pants. All of his hair was gone except for a few stands of black hair. He was wearing a large black thing that Chris took to be night vision goggles across his eyes. Clipped to his left arm was a small black duel disk. In his right hand he held what looked like a small crossbow.

"Hello Mr. Saigo." The teen said. "I am Osore."

"I don't care who you are." Chris shot back. "I'm more concerned with what you want."

Osore chuckled. "I just want a friendly little duel that's all."

"A friendly little duel eh?" Chris said. "Then why the heck did you just shoot me with a freaking crossbow! I should just call island security right now."

Osore smirked. "I figured that'd be your reaction." Osore pulled a small remote out of his pocket. "Which is why I procured some leverage you might want to know about." A whine of machinery pierce the silence as something descended from the trees above. It was a person, tied up and blindfolded. Chris's eyes widened in fear.

"Rubye!"

Osore smirked. "I'm giving you a chose. You can duel me and she will be spared. Or you can leave and she will die." Osore pulled a hypodermic needle from his pocket. "I could do too. All it would take is the contents of this needle and her heart would stop in minutes."

Chris looked from the needle in Osore's hand to the unconscious Rubye. There was only one choice. "You bastard." Chris muttered as he shuffled his deck.

Osore laughed. "No need to curse. It is just a game after all." Osore activated his duel disk. "I'll start us off in fact." He drew a card. "I summon Fear from the Dark in attack mode (1700/1500). I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. Chris found it hard to think about strategies. Not only was it the throbbing in his knee, he was starting to fill sick. "I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior in attack mode (1600-1900/1000). My Breaker the Magical Warrior will attack your Fear from the Dark!" Breaker the Magical Warrior ran forward and sliced Fear from the Dark in half with its sword (OLP: 4000-3800).

"I activate the trap Shadow of Mortal Fear!" Osore shouted. "This trap inflects 300 points of damage to you every time a fiend or zombie monster is sent to the graveyard." A black shadow shot from the trap card, passed through Breaker the Magical Warrior, and slammed into Chris (CLP: 4000-3700). The force of the blow had knocked Chris back a couple of inches. Chris fell forward, clutching at his chest as the burning pain spread outwards from his chest. There was a sharp jab of pain as the bolt in his leg was pushed in deeper. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Osore drew a card. "I activate the spell card Circle of Terror. This spell card requires us to send a monster to our graveyards if we want to normal or special summon from our hands. So I discard this monster to summon Fear Incarnate Fiend in attack mode (1100/200)." A fiend materialized in front of Osore. Its body, arms, and legs with very small and cylinder in shape. The things hands, feet, and head were severally out of proportion to the rest of the body. Its feet and hands were large and pale in color. It oval shaped head was a dark gray color with a single blood red eye in the middle of its head. Its large mouth was studded with razor-sharp teeth. It opened its mouth as a long serpentine tong uncurled from its mouth as it uttered a loud hiss. "Since the monster I just discarded was a fiend, you lose another 300 life points." A second shadow shot from Shadow of Mortal Fear and slammed into Chris (CLP: 3700-3400). "Now for my monster, you see once per turn I declare one monster type. Then my monster can attack that monster and destroy it, while my monster itself is not destroyed." A gold aura appeared around Fear Incarnate Fiend. "Now my Fear Incarnate Fiend will destroy your Breaker the Magical Warrior!" Fear Incarnate Fiend hobbled to Breaker the Magical Warrior, wrapped its thin body around Breaker, and bit his head off (OLP: 3800-3300). "I'll end my turn by placing one facedown."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the trap Spellcaster Apprenticeship, which allows me to special summon a level 3 or lower spellcaster monster from my deck in defense mode. So I special summon Magician of Faith. But now I sacrifice her to summon Chaos Command Magician in attack mode (2400/1900)." Chris said, discarded a card. "Now my Chaos Command Magician will attack Fear Incarnate Fiend!" Chaos Command Magician aimed its rod at Fear Incarnate Fiend, and fired a stream of magical energy at it.

"I activate my trap Infernal Switchout!" Osore shouted. "This card allows me to return my Fear Incarnate Fiend to my hand and special summon my Paranoid Goblin in attack mode (1500/300)." A small, pale grey, goblin like creature appeared on the field for an instant before it was destroyed by Chaos Command Magician's attack (OLP:3300-2400). Suddenly Chaos Command magician charged forwards towards Osore. "What the…?!"

"Go get Rubye!" Chris shouted. Chaos Command Magician jumped over Osore, landing next to the bond Rubye. Making several slashing movements with its rod, the ropes binding Rubye literally fell apart. Chaos Command Magician caught Rubye before she fit the ground, and ran back towards Chris's field.

"Now wait a minute!" Osore shouted. He moved himself to block Chaos Command Magician's path. But suddenly part of his pant leg caught fire. Cursing, Osore jumped around trying to stamp out the fire. Chaos Command Magician meanwhile had gently laid Rubye up against a nearby tree, and returned to his place in front of Chris.

Osore had managed to put his pants out and was now glaring at Chris. "That does it. You're going to pay for that, and by losing life points for a start. Remember my Paranoid Goblin? Its effect sent three fiend monsters to the graveyard and since my Paranoid Goblin is a fiend itself, my Shadow of Mortal Fear with hit you 1200 points of damage." Four shadows shot from Shadow of Mortal Fear and slammed into Chris (CLP: 3400-2200). This time instead of dissipating on contact, and shadows maintain form and slammed Chris into a tree. There was a loud _crack _and immense pain erupted from Chris's left leg. Chris looked down at his left leg, which was now twisted off at a weird angle.

"Well would you look at that." Osore said. "Your leg appears to be broken. Now if I've got my timing right, you should be throwing up in the next few seconds."

"What do you mea…" Chris started, but some massive upheaval started in his stomach. He clutched at his belly as the contents of his stomach traveled from his stomach and up his throat. Turn his head to the side, Chris projectile vomited across the nearby trees. "What did you do?" spluttered Chris, choking and coughing on vomit.

"That bolt in your leg was tipped with a poisoned blade." Osore said. "You see while it isn't powerful enough to kill you, it will make every moment of consciousness as painful and unbearable as possible. In another thirty minutes, you'll lose control of muscle contractions, which will be very painful. Ten minutes after that, you'll lose control of your bowls. Then you'll lose consciousness."

"I end my turn." Chris gasped.

Osore drew a card. "I activate the spell card Ultimate Dimension Transfer. This spell card allows me to send one faceup card on my field to special summon a monster from my hand. I send Cycle of Terror to the graveyard to special summon Specter of Fright in attack mode (0/500)." A transparent object that had no definite form appeared on the field. "If I pay 800 life points, this monster can count as two sacrifices until the end of the turn (OSL: 2400-1600). I sacrifice Specter of Fright to summon **Night Terror** (2900/2200)." A large spectral fiend appeared on the field. It was a pick black color. It had a long serpentine body that ended in a muscular human torso. A pair of black bird like wings protruded from its back and long arms that ended in three sinister claws. Its head was similar to a lion's head, expect for it had long fangs. "Now Night Terror, attack Chaos Command Magician!" Night Terror lunged forward, grabbing Chaos Command Magician in its jaws and swallowing it whole (CLP: 2200-1700). "Now for Night Terror's effect, when Night Terror destroys a monster, you take damage equal to half of the destroyed monster's attack points." Night Terror lunged at Chris, swiping at Chris with its claws, leaving long cuts across his chest (CLP: 1700-500). "And don't forget about my Shadow of Mortal Fear, my Specter of Fright was a zombie monster." A shadow shot from Shadow of Mortal Fear and slammed into Chris (CLP: 500-200). "I'll end my turn at that."

Chris drew a card. "I set a monster in defense and a card facedown. I end my turn."

"Hey, they're over there!" Both Chris and Osore jumped at the sound of the shout. A group of Duel Academy Security officers charged into the clearing. "By order of the Chancellor I hereby proclaim this duel to be illegal. Both of you turn off your duel disks and surrender immediately!"

"Don't interfere!" Osore shouted. Night Terror whipped its tail around in a circle around Osore and Chris. It violently expanded the circle, knocking the security officers off their feet and sending them flying back into the woods. Osore glared at Chris. "You called them didn't you?"

"I sent them an e-mail before I came after you." Chris said. "Did you honestly think I wouldn't do something like that?"

"It doesn't matter much at this point. Night Terror, attack his facedown!" Night Terror lunged at the facedown, arms outreached, and claws ready to tear the monster apart.

"I activate Negate Attack!" Chris shouted. "This stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

Osore shrugged. "Not like it matters. Because If I draw a monster next turn I can activate Night Terror's second effect, Night Terror allows me to discard a monster from my hand to take a monster of the same level from my deck. And since that monster will either by a zombie or fiend type, my Shadow of Mortal Fear will hit you with 300 points of damage. Which you don't have. So I'll end my turn."

Chris drew a card. He examined the card he just drew. _'This could be too obvious but I'll have to go with it'_. "I sacrifice my facedown monster to summon Spell Shooter in attack mode (2000/1200)." A wizard in short black robes appeared on the field. Instead of a staff or rod, the wizard held a large cannon-lie rife. "I activate the effect of my Spell Shooter. If I discard a spell card from my hand, I can destroy a monster on the field." Chris discarded a card from his hand. The rife that Spell Shooter held made a long click noise. Spell Shooter aimed its rife at Night Terror and fired. A green colored bolt of energy shot from the rifle and hit Night Terror square in the chest. It shattered instantly.

"Damn it, no!" Osore shouted.

"Now my Spell Shooter will attack you directly!" Chris shouted. Spell Shooter aimed its gun at Osore and fired. The green bolt of energy hit Osore, sending him flying into a tree (OLP: 1600-0). Chris collapsed, ignoring the pain from his chest and both legs. Darkness started to overtake him. His eyes closed and he could see nothing. As he faded into unconsciousness, he heard screams, terrible horror filled screams. Then he lost consciousness.

Bright lights assaulted Chris's eyes has he slowly regained consciousness. For a second, Chris thought his was dead. No, he couldn't be. He could feel his body, like he normally would. He could also hear a loud beeping. Complete feeling to his body started flowing back to him. His left leg was bound in something tight and hard, while his chest and part of his upper right legs were wrapped in bandages. Several tubes ran in and out of his body.

Chris suddenly became aware of a different feeling. Someone was holding his hand. He tried to turn his head and see who was holding it but he found that he couldn't. He managed to gently squeeze the hand. To his relief, the hand gently squeezed. There was a quick shuffling sound. "Chris, are you awake?" some one whispered.

"Rubye…" Chris groaned, not quite able to talk right. He opened his eyes slightly, Rubye's face swimming in and out of focus.

"Chris, I…." But Chris didn't hear what she said, for he was started to lose consciousness again.

"Rubye…" Chris groaned again. Chris muttered something else, but he could make out what he even said. Rubye stopped talk. She moved closer to his face. Her face hung very close to his face. Chris managed to lift his head slightly, and they kissed. They held the kiss for several seconds. While they held the kiss, Chris felt a feeling he never felt before. It was a stranger warm, happiness. It was some sort of bliss that made him forget the pain he had just been through, and the more pain he would surely be facing. Chris broke off the kiss as his head fell back to the pillow. To his great regret, Chris lost consciousness.

* * *

**Chris's Card(s)**

**Spell Shooter**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2000/1200)

**Effect: **Discard a spell card from your hand. If this is done, destroy one monster one the field. This effect can only be used once per turn.

**Osore's Card(s)**

**Fear Incarnate Fiend **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1100/200)

**Effect: **Once per turn, declare one monster type. Until the end of this turn, any monsters of the declared type can not destroy this monster in battle and that monster is destroyed instead. Damage calculation is applied as normal.

**Paranoid Goblin **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/300)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, both players discard the top five cards of their decks.

**Specter of Fright **

**Type: **monster/dark/zombie-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(0/500)

**Effect: **If you pay 800 life points, this monster will counter as two sacrifices in a tribute summon.

**Night Terror**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(2900/2200)

**Effect: **When this card destroys a monster as a result of battle, inflect half of that monster's attack points to your opponent's life points. Once per turn, you may discard a monster card from your hand and add a monster of the same level to your hand.

**Ultimate Dimension Transfer **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a large machine disappearing into a wormhole.

**Effect: **send one faceup monster one your side of the field to the graveyard. Special summon one level 4 or lower monster from your hand.

**Infernal Swichout **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a Marauding Captain switching places with a Kuriboh

**Effect: **Activate only when your opponent's monster is about to destroy one of your monsters. Return that monster to your had and special summon a monster with less attack points than the attacking monster. That monster becomes the new target of your opponent's attack.

**Shadow of Mortal Fear**

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **several decaying fiends, zombies, and ghosts attack a village and violently killing its inhabitants.

**Effect: **Each time one of your fiend or zombie monsters is sent to the graveyard, inflect 300 points of damage to your opponent.


	19. Standings

Chancellor Arthur came at a run down the hallway. He had been woken from his sleep and told that another shadow duel had taken place. He had been told that the student from last time had been involved, and was near death. In response to this news, Chancellor Arthur had called an emergency meeting of the teachers. Chancellor Arthur burst into the conference room. Professors Anthia, Higema, Ginsea, Toma, and Vice Chancellor Nickolas were already there. Professor Gensia and Vice Chancellor Nickolas were sitting in their respective seats while Professors Higema and Toma were huddled around Anthia, who was in great distress, in an attempt to comfort her.

"You can go and be with Chris if you want, Anthia." Arthur said kindly.

Anthia shook her head. "No, I need to be here and do my job." Arthur wanted to continue the conversation, but Professor Aaron hobbled in.

"Sorry I'm late." Aaron apologized. "If it wasn't for my leg I would've been her sooner."

"Right then, let's get started." Arthur said as he sat down. "Now as you all now, Mr. Saigo was involved in a similar duel just a few days ago. Apparently the person claiming to be Osore kidnapped his girlfriend, Rubye Dazai, to force Chris to duel him. Propably to get revenge for his comrade that Chris defeated. Now, it turns out that Osore is actually Katsu Tanaka, one of the four students who disappeared. Dr. Inoue, would you please takeover?"

A man who had been standing in the corner of the room stepped forward. Dr. Kazou Inoue was the Academy's doctor. He was tall, around his mid-thirties. His hair was a light brown and cut very shot. His was wearing white scrubs and a surgical mask hung around his neck. Dr. Inoue didn't live on the island, but was flown over if there was a bad accident or a student was seriously injured.

"Of the three students, Rubye was the best off." Dr. Inoue said in his slow, deep voice. "She appears to have been injected with a powerful sedative, but is in perfect health. As for Katsu, he sustained a few cut and has two large bruises on his chest and back. Also, I ran few tests on his brain and got the same results as the test preformed on Eiji."

"In other words, he has amnesia too." Professor Higema said.

"Yes." Dr. Inoue said. "As for Chris, he took a severe beating. In extracted the bolt from his leg, and closed the wound. Upon inspection of the bolt, I found that the tip had been tipped in poison." At this Anthia's eyes widened and what little color in her face drained away. "Fortunately, the poison was a mild variety and in an insufficient amount to cause any lasting damage. His left leg was broken in two places, but I managed to set them both and they should heal just nicely. A couple of his middle ribs are fractured and he had three long cuts across his chest. They're not deep, but they will leave scars. Lastly, he had a mild concussion with no signs of any brain damage. In short, he isn't in any danger, but he will be hurting for a while."

Arthur nodded. Then he stood up. "Now is the time for action. I want every inch of this island searched until we find the other two missing students and when we find who is behind it all. Also, there is to be a curfew. No student is to be out of their dorm between 9:00p.m.- 6:00a.m. Then there will be night patrols to enforce the curfew, and apprehend the other two missing students should they appear." Arthur sat back down as everyone else stood up and left the room in order to put Arthur's demands into motion. "I just hope this doesn't turn out like last year." Arthur muttered to himself.

* * *

What happened to Chris was supposed to be kept secret. However, the students had obviously noticed the curfew and the heightened security. Also, the story of what had happened on Spirit Day had spread to every part of the school, and so had the story of the missing students. Then somewhere and somehow, the story was leaked to the student body. Before Chancellor Arthur could come up with a decent cover story, the story had spread across the school like wildfire. At that point, Arthur was forced to come clean. So when the big day came when they were going to announce who was going to represent the school in the National Academy Championship, there was a feeling of building nervousness instead of excitement.

The students were gathered in the auditorium, waiting for the announcement. The students were talking quietly amongst themselves. Others sat, glancing nervously over their shoulders, as if expecting to be attacked. Caden and Dustin were sitting near the back of the auditorium when Rubye sat down in an empty seat next to them.

"How is Chris doing?" Caden asked.

"He's going to be alright." Rubye replied. Her eyes were red, and looked as if she had been crying. "They've been keeping him on painkillers so he's a bit loopy."

"Well there's no need to worry then." Dustin said, forcing himself to be cheerful. "He'll be back on his feet in no time!" Rubye nodded in reply. Before the conversation could continue further, Professor Aaron stepped up on stage and started to talk.

"After a month of dueling, the final results on duel points are in!" Aaron said. "Now, as you all know, the ten duelists with the most duel points will be chosen. In think I'll get to the point. Please save all applause until I finish." Professor Aaron pulled a piece of paper out his pocket. "The first duelist, with 1068 points, is Trevor Gasina! The second duelist, with 1003 points, is Alexandra Hirano! The third duelist, with 989 points, is Peter Noro."

"Hey, isn't that guy with the Exodia deck that beat Chris a while back?" Dustin asked. Caden nodded.

"The fourth duelist," Aaron continued, "with 920 points, is Faron Egawa! The fifth duelist, with 896 points, is Edon Ando! The sixth duelist, with 854 points, is Myrine Yonai! The seventh duelist, with 834 points, is Rubye Dazai. The eighth duelist, with 801 points, is Christopher Saigo! The ninth duelist, with 789 points, is Caden Hama. The tenth duelist, with 734 points, is Dustin Seo who will also be our riding duelist in the tournament!" The auditorium erupted into polite, though not exactly enthusiastic, applause. Caden and Dustin shook each others hands.

"Congratulations." Dustin said.

"You too." Caden replied. "Although I think you were a sure win at it. I mean, nobody shows as much interest as you do in Riding Dueling." Caden turned in his seat to face Rubye. "Congratulations to you to Rubye….wait where'd she go?" Rubye was no longer seating in the seat next to him and was nowhere to be seen. Caden shrugged. "Must've gone to tell Chris the good news."

Further up near the top of the auditorium, Edon and Faron had been sitting together watching the announcements. Faron shot a smug look at Edon. "What's the matter with you?"

Edon glared back. "What?"

"I got more points than you." Faron smirked.

"And?" Edon asked.

"The way you go on about me being an idiot, you'd think that would happen." Faron said. "I guess that proves you wrong."

"Faron, you always and always will be an idiot." Edon said. "And because you're such an idiot, people thought you'd be an easy mark."

Faron's smug look disappeared to be replaced by a dumfounded look. "Well, that explains a lot."

Edon sighed. "Idiot."

* * *

Masaru leaned against the door of his lab, listening to the noises of the Island Security Guards outside in the hallway. Masaru had always prided himself for being able to stay calm and collected under any circumstances. But now, Masaru was losing faith in his ability. He was sweating bullets and his heart was beating madly against his chest. Masaru had realized that they were there until they had started searching the upper rooms. Masaru was sure if 'searching' was the right word. By the sounds he had been hearing, they were tearing the whole place apart.

Masaru heard footsteps came down the hall and stop in front of the door. Masaru braced himself. In seconds, the security guard would open the door and be discovered. "Hey, wasn't there supposed to be a room here?"

Masaru stared at the door. "What the….?"

A second pair of footsteps walked up. There was a shuffling of paper. "No, it's not here on the blueprints. Come on, we've got more work to do." The two men walked off. Masaru sighed with relief.

"Didn't you think I would take precautions about that?" Masaru was startled to see Adelie standing in the room.

"What the heck?" Masaru gasped. "How did you get in here!?"

"My movements aren't limited to this realm." Adelie said. She pointed to the shadows at the other end of the room. "I can move though the shadows and show up anywhere else where there is a shadow. But more on that later, I came to check on the process of the clone."

"Oh, well…" Masaru said, trying to regain his composure. Masaru gestured to a machine that looked similar to the racing games found in the average arcade. The clone was sitting in the seat. Several IVs and diodes were attached to him. On the screen in front of him, several small screens displayed sensors monitoring his body functions. He was wearing a large grey helmet that incased his head.

"What exactly is going on here?" Adelie asked.

"He's learning." Masaru replied. "I couldn't just make a fully equipped brain that would be ready to go the instant I woke the clone. I couldn't only engineer the brain to be able to memorize anything it saw and to solve problems faster than the normal human, and with better results. In other words, he still needs to be taught things, which is what's happening right now."

"How long will this process take?" Adelie asked.

"Only a couple days for information that average people would know." Masaru said. "Then we'd need to teach him how to duel. At this point, I can't guess at who long that might take."

"Right then." Adelie said turning her back to Masaru. "Call me when the clone is completely finished." Adelie walked forward into the shadows and disappeared.

* * *

The medical ward of the Duel Academy was on par with several hospitals. It was located near the back of the school. There ten rooms, and it was staffed by four nurses and Dr. Inoue when he was flown in. A nurse led Rubye down the sterile, surgical white hallway. Only three of the rooms were occupied, two of which were guarded by Island Security Guards. The nurse stopped outside of Chris's room, hand on the knob.

"I have to warn you, Chris still a bit disorientated from the painkillers." She said. "It'll be hard for him to understand and be understood." Rubye nodded. The nurse opened the door and Rubye stepped into the room. Chris was still lying in his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Hello Chris." Rubye said. "Feeling any better?"

Chris turned his head to look at Rubye. He was slightly pale and his eyes were glassy. "Hey Rubye." He said hoarsely. He stared back up at the ceiling. "Rubye, is it just me or are there a bunch of little pink elephants running around on the ceiling?"

"No Chris." Rubye said. "It's the painkillers, remember?"

"Oh yeah, that's rights." Chris muttered.

"Chris, they announced who is going to duel for the school in the National Academy Championship." Rubye said. "And guess what, you made the list."

Chris looked up. "Really?"

Rubye nodded. "Yes, you did. Caden, Dustin, and I made it too."

Chris smiled. "Wow, that's great Rubye. I….whoa." Chris's smiled changed to a surprised frown. "Rubye, did you just sprout wings?"

Rubye chuckled. "No Chris. The painkillers, remember?"

"Oh yeah, that's right." Chris said. Suddenly, a second nurse walked in. She had a stern look on her face and was holding a syringe in her hand.

"I'm sorry Miss. Dazai, but you'll have to leave." She said. "Chris needs his next dose of painkiller and it will put him to sleep for a while."

"Okay." Rubye said. She bent over and kissed Chris on the cheek. "Goodbye Chris. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodbye Rubye." Chris replied. Rubye left the room as the nurse administered the shot. As Rubye walked down the hallway, tears ran from her eyes and down her face. She couldn't help but feeling incredibly guilty. Not only did Chris have to come to her rescue, he was now bedridden and incredible pain. As she left the medical ward, a new determination came over her. From now on, no one would come to her rescue, but she would save her self. If another duelist like Nekkyou and Osore showed up, she'd know what to do.


	20. Never Ending Sorrow Part 1

The moon light the dark scene with a pale light as it rose in the night sky. The dorms of the Academy were all black, and an eerie silence had fallen upon the academy. All lights that had would have been normally left on during the night had been shut off. Now the only lights that were visible were the bobbing lights of the flashlights held by the academy security guards who were making their appointed rounds.

One of these lights was held by Anthia, alone in her thoughts as she walked down the dark, deserted hallway. She wasn't sleeping well, her worrying over Chris being responsible for it. She felt guilty for not being with Chris while he was hospitalized. But, she had a job to do so she had little choice in the matter. Their parents were fling in to visit Chris, but this fact did little to comfort her. She felt that she had little Chris down, since siblings were supposed to watch out for each other. Her guilt over the whole situation was tearing her apart.

Anthia's thoughts were interrupted, however as she turned a corner. The beam of her flashlight caught the glint of a metal object. It was a flashlight, sitting upside down in the middle of the floor. Anthia picked it up and examined it. The lens was cracked and it had a dent in its side as if it had been thrown against the ground with significant force. Then a strange sound started echoing down the hallway. _Slurp, slurp slurp_. Anthia swung her flashlight across the hallway. Seeing nothing, Anthia slowly walked forward. The slurping noise grew slowly louder as she inched forward. Then the beam of her flashlight caught a freighting sight.

A security guard was lying on the floor, clearly unconscious. Bent over the security guard was a second person. He was wearing what appeared to be a black jumpsuit. The person head was not visible, bent over the man neck. It looked like it was drinking the man's blood. Anthia gasped and stepped backward. The person, alerted to her presence by the flashlight, stood up and turned to face her. The person was a boy, about 16 or 17. He was completely bald with weird symbols that Anthia couldn't recognize. The iris's of his eyes were a back and his skin was a darker than normal hue. Fluid was dripping from his mouth which Anthia thought was blood, but it was some sort of black fluid that was also seeping out of a bit wound in the security guard's neck.

The boy inhaled sharply, and exhaled with rapture. "Ah, it comes off of you in waves! Its taste is like none I've ever known. I must have it!"

"Have what!?" Anthia shouted.

"Your sadness," he whispered, "your despair, your anguish, your depression, your sorrow!" His black eyes seem to come to life with a wild excitement and madness. He lifted his arm and activated a duel disk. "Duel me!"

"Alright, I will." Anthia activated her own duel disk and shuffled her deck. "Mind if I ask what I should call you?"

"I am known as Urei," he said. He placed his deck in his disk and drew his hand and one extra card. "I'll start off by playing Shadows of Sorrow in attack mode (1100/1300)." A large shadow appeared on the field. While having no shade or form, it did make moaning and sobbing noises and an occasional scream or wail. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Absorbing Kid from the Sky in attack mode (1300/1000). Now my Absorbing Kid from the Sky will attack your Shadows of Sorrow!" Absorbing Kid from the Sky reared back and inhaled, causing a strong vacuum that sucked Shadows of Sorrow into its mouth. It swallowed Shadows of Sorrow and its stomach expanded a little (ULP: 4000-3800). Suddenly Absorbing Kind from the Sky collapsed and started sobbing (1300-1100/1000). "What the…!?"

"The effect of my Shadows of Sorrow activated," Urei said. "When it is destroyed as a result of battle, the monster that destroyed it loses 200 attack points until your next turn."

"Well, that doesn't stop my monster's effect from activating! When it destroys a monster, I gain life points equal to that monster's level times 300 (ALP: 4000-5200). I end my turn," Anthia finished.

Urei drew a card. "I summon Sadness Drone in attack mode (1700/600)." A small robot appeared on the field. Its body was a large sphere with a sad face painted on the front of it. Its arms and legs were short and thick and the whole thing was painted black. "Now my Sadness Drone will destroy Absorbing Kid from the Sky!" Sadness Drone hobbled forward, lifting its arms as it went. When it was in front of Absorbing Kid from the Sky, it brought both arms down crushing Absorbing Kid from the Sky (ALP: 5200-4600). "I end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Seraphiem Gunner in attack mode (1800/1200). Now my Seraphiem Gunner will attack Sadness Drone." Seraphiem Gunner lifted its gun and blasted Sadness Drone to pieces (ULP: 3800-3700). "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Urei drew a card. "I activate the effect of my Sadness Drone. When it is my graveyard, I can special summon it to my field in defense mode with 0 attack and 0 defense." Sadness Drone, though looking more like a pile of junk, appeared in front of Urei (0/0). "Next, I set one monster facedown and end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Command Angel in attack mode (1200/1900). Now I activate her effect, which gives all fairy type monsters a 400 attack point boost (SG 1800-2200/1200) (CA 1200-1600/1900). Now my Seraphiem Gunner's effect activates, giving him an additional 300 attack point boost for each additional fairy on the field (2200-2500/1200). Now my Command Angel will destroy Sadness Drone and Seraphiem Gunner will attack the facedown!" Command Angel and Seraphiem flew forward. Command Angel punched the Sadness Drone, destroying it. Seraphiem Gunner landed on the facedown card and fired its gun into it. A brief image of a woman, with a sad look on her face, holding an old, beaten up harp appeared before it was blasted to pieces.

"The effect of the monster you just destroyed now activates," Urei said. "When my Player of Depression is flip summoned, you have to discard a card from your hand." Anthia discarded a card from her hand. "Now I activate my trap, Dead Soul Reprisals. From now till the end of my next turn, all monsters that destroyed a monster in battle are removed from play at the end of the turn."

"I end my turn," Anthia growled as Seraphiem Gunner and Command Angel disappeared from her field.

Urei drew a card. "I summon Slaves to Despair in attack mode (1400/0)." A group of disheveled, half dead looking people appeared on the field. All of them were sobbing, pull at the chains that bound them in a futile attempt at freedom. "Now my Slaves to Despair will attack you directly!" Slaves to Despair awkwardly hobbled forward and one man slapped Anthia across her arm with the loose end of a chain wrapped around his neck (ALP: 5200-4000). "Now my Slaves to Despair's effect activates, giving it an extra 100 attack points every time it does damage to you life points." A new person appeared in the group of people that was Slaves to Despair (1400-1500/0). "I end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Rider in the Sky in attack mode (1600/1300)." A man, wearing armor that was a bright grey color, mounted on a giant white winged horse appeared on the field. "Now my Ride in the Sky will attack your Slaves to Despair!" Rider in the Sky charged into the group of people, swinging a long sword at each person, destroying all of them (ULP: 3700-3600). "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Urei drew a card. "I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards."

"That activates my Rider in the Sky's effect," Anthia said. "It gains 300 attack points every time you activate a spell card (1600-1900/1300)."

"Whatever," Urei shrugged as he drew his two cards. "I set a monster in defense mode and place two cards facedown. I end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I summon Lance Angel in attack mode (1700/900)." A young man in a white tunic, with a small metal helmet on his head, and holding a long golden lance appeared on the field. Now my Lance Angel will attack your facedown monster!" Lance Angel charged forward, lifting his lance to attack.

"I activate Negate Attack," Urei said. "I doubt I need to explain how it works." A large vortex appeared in front of Urei's monsters, catching Lance Angel's attack.

"I set one card facedown and end my turn," Anthia said.

Urei drew a card. "I set one more monster facedown and end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I sacrifice my Rider in the Sky and my Lance Angel to summon Guardian Angel Joan in attack mode (2800/2000). Now my Guardian Angel Joan will attack the monster on your left." Guardian Angel Joan flew forward, and sliced the monster in half with her long sword. "Just so you know, when my Guardian Angel Joan destroys a monster I gain life points equal to that monster's attack points (ALP: 4000-4600).

"By the way, the monster you just destroyed was called The Weeping Widow," Urei said, "and it has a very special effect. When it is destroyed by battle, the monster that destroyed it can't attack until the end of your next turn."

Anthia sighed. "I end my turn."

Urei drew a card. "I activate the spell card Star Blast! This spell card reduces the level of my monsters by 1 for every 500 life points I pay. So I pay 1000 to reduce the level of all of my monsters by 2 (ULP: 3600-2600). Now I sacrifice my facedown monster to summon Despair from the Dark in attack mode (2800/3000). Next I equip my Despair from the Dark with Axe of Despair, giving Despair from the Dark and extra 1000 attack points (2800-3800/3000). Now my Despair from the dark will attack your Guardian Angel Joan!" Despair from the Dark lurched forward, looming over Guardian Angel Joan.

"I activate the trap, Protection of the Holy!" Anthia shouted. "This trap card keeps all light monsters I control from being destroyed for one turn." Before Despair from the Dark's attack connected, and barrier of light appeared around Guardian Angel Joan, which took Despair from the Dark's attack (ALP: 4600-3600).

"Yeah, will you still lost life points, so I'm satisfied for the moment," Urei said. "I end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "I pass."

Urei drew a card. "Now lets try this one more time. Despair from the Dark will attack your Guardian Angel Joan!" Despair from the Dark lurched forward again, raising its clawed hand, ready to attack.

"I activate the effect of a monster in my hand called Honest!" Anthia shouted. "When a light type monster I control attacks, I can send Honest to the graveyard to increase my monster attack points by your monster's attack points (2800-6600/2000). Guardian Angel Joan swung her sword, slicing Despair from the Dark's hand off. Despair from the Dark roared with pain, waving its severed stump, as Guardian Angel Joan flew forward slicing Despair from the Dark into small pieces, which promptly exploded. "You lose"

Or so you'd think," Urei said (ULP: 300). "You see, I just discarded a monster from my hand called Sadness of Greed (0/0).When I discard Sadness of Greed from my hand, I gain an extra 500 life points, which was enough of a boost to same me this turn."

"Does that really matter?" Anthia asked. "Now I get life points due to Guardian Angel Joan's effect (ALP: 3600-7400)."

Urei smiled, unconcerned. "No, I suppose not. Seeing that there is nothing I can do, I end my turn."

Anthia drew a card. "Now Guardian Angel Joan, attack….." Anthia stopped suddenly. She started the shudder violently. Then she gave off a blood curdling wail and collapsed to the floor. She drew herself into the fetal position and started to sob uncontrollably.

Urei stared at her for a moment. "Whoa, I'd though you'd never sacrum." Urei deactivated his duel disk and walked towards Anthia. "You see, I not only feed off of people's sadness and despair, but I can also magnify other people's sadness and misery. But I do have to admit, you took longer than most of the other people I've tried it on. But the payoff is worth the effort. You have the most despair around you than anyone, or at least," Urei gestured to the unconscious security guard, "more than these guys had at any rate."

"What…are…you going….to do…to…me?" Anthia managed to gasp through her sobs.

Urei smirked. "Think of how a vampire drinks a person's blood. Except I will be 'drinking' your sadness, as I've already said." Urei smirked as he kneeled down next to Anthia, and drew his mouth to her exposed neck.

* * *

**Anthia's Card(s)**

**Rider in the Sky**

**Type: **monster/light/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/1300)

**Effect: **Every time your opponent activates a spell card, this card gains 300 attack points.

**Lance Angel**

**Type: **monster/light/fairy-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/900)

**Effect: **When this card attacks an opponent's monster in defense mode, and its attack points are higher than that monster's defense points, the difference is dealt as damage to your opponent.

**Protection of the Holy**

**Type: **trap

**Image: **a barrier of light protecting several angels from the attacks of several thousand demons

**Effect: **During the turn this card is activated, all light type monsters can not be destroyed as a result of battle. Damage calculations apply as normal.

**Urei Card(s)**

**Shadows of Sorrow**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1100/1300)

**Level: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, the monster that destroyed it loses 200 attack points.

**Sadness Drone**

**Type: **monster/dark/machine-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/600)

**Effect: **When this card is in the graveyard, you can special summon it to your field in defense mode. Its attack and defense points become 0, and it can not be used in a tribute summon.

**Player of Depression **

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(200/1500)

**Effect: **(flip) Your opponent must discard one card from their hand.

**Slaves to Despair **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/0)

**Effect: **When this card inflects damage to your opponent, this card gains 100 attack points.

**Weeping Widow **

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(600/400)

**Effect: **When this card is destroyed as a result of battle, the monster can't attack until the end of your opponent's next turn.

**Sadness of Greed**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level:** 1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **If you discard this card from your hand, you gain 500 life points.

**Dead Soul Reprisals **

**Type: **trap

**Image: **warriors being dragged into a hole by the spirits of the men they had just killed.

**Effect: **Until the end of your next turn, all monsters that destroy a monster by result of battle are removed from play at the end of the turn.


	21. Never Ending Sorrow Part 2

_**CRACK**_

Urei groaned and fell forward onto Anthia. In that second, Anthia had managed to get control of herself. She tried to lift her head up, trying to see who had saved her. But all she managed to see was a pair of beat up shoes and a worn pair of jeans. The person grunted as he lifted Urei off of Anthia and threw him of to the side. Then two pieces of a broken cane fell to the floor.

"Damn, they don't make canes like they used too," the person said.

Now that Urei was off of her, Anthia could manage to get a good look at the person. "Aaron!?" Professor Aaron pick Anthia picked her up and sat her against the wall. "Uh Aaron, I'm going to throw up!" Aaron quickly jumped into a room nearby, and came back with a trashcan. Anthia took the trashcan and started violently throwing up.

"I saw the your duel and came as fast as I could." Professor Aaron said. "I would have been here sooner if it weren't for my leg."

Anthia stopped vomiting for a moment. She took deep breaths and tried to steady herself. "Aaron thanks." She bent her head and continued to vomit.

"No problem," Aaron said.

There was a loud groan, and Aaron turned to see Urei standing up. He was unsteady on his feet. He clutched his head were Aaron had hit him. "Damn you!" He shouted. "You took that feast way from me! I'll kill you!"

Aaron actually chuckled. "I've heard _that _before." Aaron lifted his arm and activated his duel disk. "How's about you and me have a little duel to settle things. What do ya say?"

Urei pondered the thought for a moment, but activated his duel disk. "Since you attacked me I'll go first," he said as he drew his hand and a sixth card. " Echo of Sorrow in attack mode (1000/450)." A transparent woman, who was weeping loudly, appeared on the field. "Then I set two cards facedown and end my turn."

Aaron drew a card. "I summon Underworld Accountant in attack mode (?/0)." A large, decrepit, black calculator appeared on the field. Protruding from the top of the calculator was the upper half of a human skeleton. "Now I activate Underworld Accountant's effect. For every card in my hand, Underworld Accountant gains 300 attack points (0-1200/0)." The skeleton leaned forward and typed 300x4 into the calculator, leaving 1200 on the screen. "Now my Underworld Accountant will attack your Echo of Sorrow!" The skeleton on Underworld Accountant opened its mouth and spit black flame towards Echo of Sorrow.

"I activate the trap Negate Attack!" Urei shouted. "This trap stops your attack and ends your battle phase."

Aaron shrugged. "I set one card facedown (1200-900/0) and end my turn."

Urei drew a card. "Now Echo of Sorrow's effect activates! For every one of my main phases Echo of Sorrow is faceup on the field, you lose 200 life points." Aaron winced as a black aura appeared around him (ALP: 4000-3800). "Next I summon Flying Despair in attack mode (1700/1200)." A large, contorted, black raven appeared on the field. "Now my Flying Despair will destroy Underworld Accountant!" Flying Despair flapped into the air and came down on Underworld Accountant.

"I activate the trap card Doubling Funds!" Aaron shouted. "This card will double the attack points of my monster for this turn (900-1800/0)." Underworld Accountant grabbed Flying Despair and spit black flame into Flying Despair, destroying it (ULP: 4000-3900).

"I set a card facedown and end my turn," Urei growled (1800-900/0).

Aaron drew a card (900-1200/0). "I summon Imperial Banker in attack mode (1500/1000)." A man in a grey business suit appeared on the field. He was holding a large book labeled 'Bank Records' in his arms. "Now my Imperial Banker will destroy your Echo of Sorrow!" Imperial Bank lifted his book up, and a storm of papers shot out of the book, blowing Echo of Sorrow away (ULP: 3900-3400). "Now my Underworld Accountant will attack your life points directly."

"I activate Call of the Haunted!" Urei shouted. "I use this to special summon my Flying Despair in attack mode." Flying Despair appeared in front of Urei, and tore Underworld Accountant apart with its talons (ALP: 3800-3000).

"That activates the effect of my Imperial Banker," Aaron said. "When either of us special summons a monster, we must discard a card from our hand." Urei sighed as he discarded a card. "Now then, I'll end my turn by setting one card facedown."

Urei drew a card (ALP: 3000-2800). "I summon Soldier of Despair in attack mode (1300/1400)." A man wearing a set of black armor appeared on the field. He was wielding a large, black sword and a back shield. "Now my Flying Despair will destroy your Imperial Banker!" Flying Despair flew towards Imperial Banker.

"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon!" Aaron shouted. "I use it to destroy your Called of the Haunted, which in turn destroys your Flying Despair!" Mystical Space Typhoon erupted across the field, blowing away both Call of the Haunted and Flying Despair away.

"I activate my trap Lingering Curse of Despair!" Urei said. "When a monster of mine is destroyed, I can lower the attack points of one of your monster by 600 (1500-900/1000). Then I activate the effect of my Soldier of Despair. When a monster of mine is sent to the graveyard, I get to special summon a monster with 1000 attack points or less from my graveyard, and I chose Echo of Sorrow. Now my Echo of Sorrow will destroy your Imperial Banker!" Echo of Sorrow started to sob loudly, before throwing her arms back wide, screamed towards the sky, and shooting a black energy at Imperial Banker, destroying it (ALP: 2800-2700). "I end my turn."

Aaron drew a card. "I activate Overdrawn! This card allows me to draw three cards, but then I have to discard two at the end of my turn." Aaron drew three cards. "Now I activate the spell card Shallow Grave! This allows us both to special summon a monster from our graveyard in defense mode." Aaron set Imperial Bank while Urei set his monster. "Now I sacrifice my monster to summon Demon Debt Collector in attack mode (2200/1800)." A large demon appeared on the field. It was wearing a black business suit, and it was hold a large coins. "Now my Demon Debt Collector will attack your Echo of Sorrow!" Demon Debt Collector laughed madly as he took a handful of coins from his bag and threw them at Echo Sorrow, destroying her (ULP: 3400-2200). "I set one card and end my turn," Aaron said as he discarded two cards. "And one more thing I should mention, during each main phase, Demon Debt Collector inflects 200 points of damage to you."

"Urei drew a card (ALP: 2700-2500). "I flip monster faceup, that being Echo of Sorrow. Next, I activate the spell card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Urei drew two cards. "I activate the spell card Ancient Rules! This allows me to special summon a level 5 or higher normal monster. So I special summon Totem of Unending Sorrow in attack mode (0/3000)." A large statue of crying man appeared on the field. " But it won't be around for long because I activate the spell card Infernal Change Copy! If I pay 1000 life points, I can change the type of one of my monsters (ULP; 2200-1200), so I change my monster to a dark tuner!"

"Dark Tuner," Aaron said, rubbing his chin. "I don't think I've heard of them before."

"They work like regular tuners, only in reverse," Urei said. "Now I dark tune my Totem of Unending Sorrow and my Echo of Sorrow to dark syncho summon **Angel of Immortal Sorrow **(2700/2100)!" A black portal appeared above the field. An angel, with long black-feathered wings extended, emerged from the portal and floated down to the field. She was wearing a long, dirty white tunic, and her head was hung low. She had long black, disheveled hair. She was moaning and whimpering quietly. "Now she'll attack your Demon Debt Collector!" Angel of Immortal Sorrow lifted her hands and shot bolts of black lightning at Demon Debt Collector, destroying it (ALP: 2500-2000). "Now I activate her effect, if I sacrifice a monster, she gains a second attack!" Soldier of Despair screamed with pain before evaporating and being absorbed by Angel of Immortal Sorrow. "Now my Angel of Immortal Sorrow will destroy you!" Angel of Immortal Sorrow lifted her hands and shot black lightning at Aaron.

"I activate Nutrient Z, which gives me 4000 life points when I take 2000 or more points of damage!" Aaron shouted (ALP: 2000-6000), before Angel of Immortal Sorrow's attack slammed into him. The force of the impact threw Aaron off his feet, and sent him flying downing the hallway before hitting the ground (ALP: 6000-3300). "Ah…that hurt," Aaron groaned as he got to his feet. Aaron limped back to where he was standing before the attack. "Cursed leg," he muttered.

"You'll have a lot more to complain about now, because I activate spell Meteor of Destruction, which hits you with 1000 points of damage!" A small meteor appeared above them and slammed into Aaron (ALP: 3300-2300). "I set a card facedown and end my turn."

Aaron drew a card. "I activate Premature Burial, to bring my Demon Debt Collector (ALP: 2300-1500). Next I summon Info Banker in attack mode (300/100)." A large machine appeared on the field. It was square in shape with a monitor and keyboard sticking out on each side. "Now I activate the spell card Inflation! This card increases the level by 1 and decreases its attack points by 500 (300-0/100 LV: 1-2)."

"Was there a point to that?" Urei asked.

"Yes," Aaron said, "because Info Banker is a tuner monster! So now I tune Info Banker and Demon Debt Collector to synchro summon Blaster Banker in attack mode (2600/2200)." A humanoid robot appeared on the field. It was wearing a black business suit, and two large cannons were mounted on both of his shoulders.

"Oh yes, and just what are you going to do with that?" Urei sneered. "Destroy my monster with an effect? Well if you were, you're out of luck because I activate the trap Protection of the Unwilling Souls, which protects my monster from all monster effects and traps." Urei smirked. "Tough luck, fellow."

To Urei's surprise, Aaron smiled. "Yes, you would be right IF I was going to destroy Angel of Immortal Despair, which I am not. I'm going straight for your life points!"

"What..?!" Urei shouted in alarm.

"I activate Tax Refund!" Aaron continued. "This spell will allow me to take a spell or trap from my graveyard and added it to my hand." A card slipped out of Aaron's graveyard and Aaron took it. "Now I activate the card I took, Overdrawn which as you know allows me to draw three cards. Now here's the kicker, for every card I discard from my hand you get hit with 400 points of damage. I'm going to discard three, and if my math is correct, which it always is, 3 times 400 equals 1200. So you'll get hit with 1200 points of damage, which is all that you have."

"Oh crap," Urei said, his voice cracking.

Aaron discarded his three cards. Blaster Banker nodded, and leveled its cannons at Urei. Aaron smiled, waved and said, "Goodbye!" And Blaster Banker fired, the blast smacked Urei dead center. Urei screamed in pain, and was blasted off his feet (ULP: 1200-0). Aaron sighed with relief as Blaster Banker and Angel of Immortal Despair. The sigh turned into a groan however as pain jolted up his leg. Aaron unclipped a walky-talky from his belt and spoke into it. "This is Professor Aaron calling Security Center. I'm in the Main Building, on the fourth floor, west hallway. I'm going to need two stretchers, Dr. Inoue, and a couple of Security Officers."

"Understood," came the reply. "They will be on their way shortly."

"One more thing," Aaron added. "Tell Dr. Inoue if he has an extra cane to bring it."

"Roger." Aaron lowered the walky-talky and clipped it back to his belt. He leaned against the wall to relieve his bad leg of some pressure. Suddenly, Urei let off a blood-curdling scream. Aaron, unable to do much of anything because of his leg, turned to look at Urei. Urei had pulled into a fetal position and started sobbing, except instead of tears, he was sobbing a black liquid. The sobs stopped and Urei laid on the ground, unmoving. It took about ten minutes before Dr, Inoue, five security guards, four baring the two stretchers, and even Chancellor Arthur can running down the hallway.

"Thank goodness your alright!" Chancellor Arthur said as he came to a stop in front of Aaron. One of the security guards was holding a cane, which he immediately handed to Aaron. The security guards set to work, restraining Urei and whisking him away on the stretcher. Two remained behind with Dr. Inoue to tend to Anthia, whose injuries seemed to be physiological at best.

"I'm a little banged up, but I'm okay," Aaron replied. "I'll assume that that was one of the missing students."

Chancellor Arthur nodded. "Yes, that brings our total up to three. That just leaves one more." He laughed dryly. "Shouldn't be that hard to find." Aaron opened his mouth to reply but was cut short while an enormous pillar of flame erupted from the courtyard. It rose at least 100 feet in the night sky before it dispensed, leaving behind a small wisp of smoke.

"I think we've found them," Aaron said to no one unparticular.

Arthur sighed. "It's going to be a long night."

* * *

**Aaron's Cards**

**Underworld Accountant **

**Type: **monster/dark/machine-effect

**Level: **3

**Stats: **(?/0)

**Effect: **This card gains 300 attack point for every card in your hand.

**Imperial Banker**

**Type: **monster/earth/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1500/1000)

**Effect: **When ether player special summons a monster, they must discard one card. If not, the special summon is negated.

**Demon Debt Collector**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2200/1800)

**Effect: **At the beginning of each main phase, inflect 200 points of damage to your opponent.

**Info Banker**

**Type: **monster/light/machine-effect/tuner

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(300/100)

**Effect: **If this card is faceup on the field, send it to the graveyard to special summon a level 2 tuner monster from the graveyard.

**Blaster Banker**

**Type: **monster/light/machine-effect/synchro

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(2600/2200)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] During your main phase, you can discard as many as 5 cards from your hand. Inflict 400 points of damage to your opponent for each card discarded.

**Overdrawn**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **the goblin from Second Coin Toss crying as in front of a glare banker who his holding his hand out for something.

**Effect: **Draw three cards. At the beginning of the end phase, discard two cards.

**Tax Refund**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **the goblin from Second Coin Toss dancing happily, waving an envelop that has TAX REFUND stamped on it.

**Doubling Funds**

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **money magically appearing a in a box labeled yearly funds.

**Effect: **Select one monster you control. That monster's attack points are double until the end of the turn.

**Urei's Cards**

**Echo of Sorrow**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(1000/450)

**Effect: **For every one of your main phases this card is faceup on the field, inflict 200 points of damage to your opponent.

**Flying Despair**

**Type: **monster/dark/winged beast

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/1200)

**Effect: **none

**Soldier of Despair**

**Type: **monster/dark/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1300/1400)

**Effect: **When one of your monsters is destroyed, special summon one monster with 1000 attack points or less to the field.

**Totem of Unending Sorrow**

**Type: **monster/dark/rock

**Level:** 8

**Stats: **(0/3000)

**Effect: **none

**Angel of Immortal Sorrow**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect/dark synchro

**Level: **-6

**Stats: **(2700/2100)

**Effect: **[1 dark tuner]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] Sacrifice any number of monsters you control. This monster gains one additional attack for each monster sacrificed.

**Infernal Change Copy **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **small fiends walking into a machine and coming out as horrible, contorted demons.

**Effect: **pay 1000 life points. Change the type of one monster you control.

**Lingering Curse of Despair**

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **A murder with a dark aura around him, while his victim lays at his feet.

**Effect: **Activate when a monster you control is destroyed. Lower the attack points of one of your opponent's monsters attack points by 600 until the end of the turn.

**Protection of Unwilling Souls**

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **a wizard conjuring a wall of souls to protect himself from an attack

**Effect: **None of your monsters can be destroyed by the effect of a monster or trap.


	22. Burning Rage

While the duels between Aaron, Anthia, and Urei, a less dramatic but just as important duel was taking place.

The courtyard was completely deserted, with the exception of one solitary figure. The person hugged close to the wall, staying in the shadows cast by the main building. The figure stood there silently, making no notion that anyone was standing. It was as if the person was standing at an silent vigil, waiting for someone or something, which was not long in coming. A second person, hidden by the darkness of the night, emerged from the jungle and walked towards the main building. The second person stopped short of the building. Then the whole scene was bathed in moonlight as the moon emerged from the clouds.

The person nearest the main building was revealed to be a woman. She was wearing an Obelisk Blue uniform. Her autumn colored hair hung down at shoulder length. Strapped to her left arm was a duel disk customized to be slightly small, streamlined, and colored a light blue. The other woman wore a simple white blouse and blue jeans. Her dark black hair was short cut. Strapped to her left arm was a regular duel disk, except it was colored black.

The second woman laughed. "I suppose you were waiting for me to come along?"

The first woman nodded. "Yes, I suppose you could save that."

"And I suppose, you figured that the Chris boy would be my target? After all, he did defeat two of the others like me," the second woman said.

"Yes, it's not like it wasn't obvious," the first woman said. She stepped away from the wall, and stood in front of the door, blocking the second woman's path. Her duel disk came to life, making a small clipping noise. "But now, I'll be your opponent."

The second woman smirked. "Fine by me. You will merely share his fate." She lifted her arm and her duel disk snapped to life. "Before we start, I am Ikari. You are….?"

"Rubye," the woman said.

"Alright then, I go!" Ikari said as she drew a card. "I summon Raging Imp in attack mode (1700/600)." A man sized, blood red, humanoid imp holding a giant axe appeared on the field. "Next I set two cards and end my turn."

Rubye drew a card. "I play the field spell A Legendary Ocean!" The scenery around them changed as a small tidal wave washed over the field. Large coral reefs and beds of seaweed sprung up around them, and a giant underwater city appeared behind Rubye. "Next, I summon Silverstream Dolphin in attack mode (1100-1300/700-900)." A small, bright silver colored dolphin appeared on the field. "Then I finish my turn by placing two cards facedown."

Ikari drew a card. "I summon a second Raging Imp in attack mode (1700/600). Now my first Raging Imp will attack your Silverstream Dolphin!" Raging Imp charged forward and cleaved in half (RLP: 4000-3600). "This, in turn, activates Raging Imp's effect. Whenever another Raging Imp attacks, an extra 300 points of damaged are inflected on you (RLP: 3600-3300). Now my second Raging Imp will attack you directly." Raging Imp ran towards Rubye, rasing his axe high.

"I activate the trap Tornado Wall!" Rubye shouted. "This trap makes any damage I get from direct attacks 0." A wall of tornados appeared in front of Rubye, blocking Raging Imp's attack and threw it back to Ikari's side of the field.

"That maybe so, but you still take damage from Raging Imp's attack," Ikari said (RLP: 3300-3000). "I end my turn."

Rubye drew a card. "The effect of my Silverstream Dolphin activates. During my main phase after the turn Silverstream Dolphin was destroyed, I can special summon one level two or lower fish monster from my deck. I special summon Fishborg Blaster in attack mode (100-300/200-400). Next I summon Level Bass in attack mode (0-200/0-200)." A small red bass with a large yellow star on each side of its body appeared on the field. "Now I tune my Fishborg Blaster and my Level Bass!" Fishborg Blaster shattered, leaving behind three small orbs. The orbs flew around Level Bass a few times before phasing into it. Level Bass then began to glow brightly and change shape. "Come forth, Sea Dragon Alacuse (2500-2700/2100-2300)." A loud roar ripped the night air as a gigantic serpent appeared on the field. Its body was covered in several large, deep blue scales. On the serpent's forehead, several scales were colored a dull yellow and were shaped in the form of a crown. The creature opened its mouth and roared again, revealing several large, sharp teeth.

"Impressive monster," Ikari said, unfazed, "but care to explain how you summoned it, because I know Fishborg Blaster was only level 1 and I doubt your Level Bass had a high enough level to satisfy it."

"Well, to answer your question, when Level Bass is used in a synchro summoning for a water type synchro monster and using a water type tuner, it automatically fulfills the level requirement. Now, Sea Dragon Alacuse, attack her first Raging Imp!" Sea Dragon Alacuse surged foreword, jaws open wide.

"I activate the trap Protection of the Cursed!" Ikari shouted. "This trap card will keep your monster from destroying my Raging Imp!" Raging Imp shuttered as it was covered with a black film, then it was grabbed by Sea Dragon Alacuse's jaws. After an unsuccessful attempt to gnaw Rage Imp in half, Sea Dragon Alacuse spit Raging Imp out unceremoniously. The Raging Imp muttered several curses as it got to its feet, while the second Raging Imp laughed at his comrade's misfortune (ILP: 4000-3000).

"I end my turn," Rubye said.

Ikari drew a card. "I summon a third Raging Imp in attack mode (1700/600)."

"Is there a reason to summoning three of the same monster, especially when they are weaker then my monsters?" Rubye asked.

"Yes," Ikari said, "because I active the spell card Ritual of Summoning Wrath! When there are three Raging Imps on the field, I can use this card to special summon Demon of Wraith (2800/2400)." A large pillar of flame erupted behind Ikari, and a large humanoid creature stepped out of it. It was jet black, with a pair of glowing, blood red eyes. It was muscular, and had two large, bat-like wings sprouting out of its back. In its hands it carried a large, bloodstained broadsword. It gave out an inhuman bellow as it glared down on the field. "Now I sacrifice my Protection of the Cursed to activate Demon of Wrath's special effect. When I sacrifice a card one my side of the field, you get hit with 1000 points of damage!" Protection of the Cursed shattered, and a jet of flame shot out of Demon of Wrath's mouth towards Rubye. Rubye held up her duel disk as a shield, causing the jet of flame to split and shoot around her, leaving her unscratched but doing damage nonetheless (RLP: 3000-2000). "Now my Demon of Wrath, attack Sea Dragon Alacuse!" Demon of Wrath bellowed as it charge forward. It lifted its broadsword high, and down with devastating force on Sea Dragon Alacuse, cutting it in half (RLP: 2000-1900). "Now my three Raging Imps will attack your directly." The three Raging Imps charged forward, but where blown back by Tornado Wall.

"What was the point of that?" Rubye asked.

"Well, for starters, they wouldn't have been able to do battle damage anyway due to Ritual of Summoning Wrath anyway," Ikari explained, "But their effects are another matter."

"Oh yes, I'd forgotten," Rubye muttered (RLP: 1900-400).

"I'll end my turn at that," Ikari said, smirking at Rubye. "You know, with only 400 life points left and facing a field of powerful monsters, you'd better make this move count."

Rubye smiled as she drew a card. "I will, starting with the spell card Deep Sea Revival! This spell card allows me to special summon a water monster from my graveyard, that being my Sea Dragon Alacuse (2500-2700/2100-2300)!" Sead Dragon Alacuse reappeared on the field, giving off a loud roar. "But he won't be staying for long, because I'm activating his effect. If I release him from my field, I can special summon a water type monster from my deck." Sea Dragon Alacuse deformed into a blue light and shot into Rubye's deck. A card slip out from Rubye's deck and Rubye placed it on her field. "I summon Levia-Dragon-Daedalus in attack mode (2600-2800/1500-1700)." The large serpent creature roared as it appeared on the field.

Ikari laughed. "Is there a point to all this? Your monster isn't strong enough to beat my Demon of Wrath."

"You'll see the point if you stop interrupting me," Rubye shot back. "You see, my Levia-Dragon-Daedalus won't be sticking around either, because I can release my Levia-Dragon-Daedalus to special summon another monster." Levia-Dragon-Daedalus roared as it shattered. Then a large whirlpool appeared and the shattered bits of Levia-Dragon-Daedalus were sucked into it. The whirlpool and the bits of Levia-Dragon-Daedalus began to glow and change shape. "Come to me,** Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus **(2900-3100/1600-1800)!" The large, two-headed sea serpent roared as it glared down at Ikari and her monsters.

"That could be a problem," Ikari said calmly. "But not enough to take me out."

"That's what you think!" Rubye shouted. "I activate Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus's effect. If I remove Umi from my field to the graveyard, I can destroy all cards on the field except Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus!"

"B-But wait! You don't have Umi on the field!" Ikari shouted, starting to panic.

"My A legendary Ocean has another effect, that being it counts as Umi!" Rubye shouted back. Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus roared as the underwater city behind Rubye crumbled. Then a massive wave surged onto the field, washing away the Raging Imps, and the Demon of Wrath. Nothing was left, save Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus (3100-2900/1800-1600).

"You may have cleared my field, but I'm still in the game!" Ikari said nervously. "Even after your attack I'll still have life points!"

"No, you won't," Rubye said calmly, "because I activate the spell card Terraforming! This spell card allows me to take a field spell from my deck, and guess what card that is?"

Ikari gulped. "A…A Legendary Ocean?"

"Bingo!" Rubye shouted as she activated the field spell. The field was covered in water, and the underwater city appeared behind Rubye again (2900-3100/1600-1800). "Now Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus, end this duel!" Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus fired two streams of water at Ikari, knocking her to the ground (ILP: 3000-0).

Rubye sighed with relief as Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Daedalus and A Legendary Ocean disappeared. "Well, at least that's over." Suddenly, Ikari screamed. Her body convulsed, and trembled as she screamed. Suddenly, a gigantic pillar of flame erupted from Ikair's body, reaching high into the night sky. Ikari gave on last scream before she stopped moving, and the pillar of flame disappeared.

Rubye stood there in shock for a moment, staring at Ikari's still body. Suddenly, she heard shouts, and the sounds of approaching people. Rubye turned and ran towards the blackness of the woods, disappearing into the night.

* * *

All was still in Chris's small room. The only sound to be heard was Chris's incoherent mutters caused by his medicine-induced dreams. Occasionally, Chris would shift his position, muttering 'Asher', or 'Anthia', or 'Rubye'. Suddenly, there was a quiet _pop _and a person appeared at the foot of Chris's bed. The person gently nudged Chris until Chris opened a sleepy, glassy eye.

"W-what?" Chris said softly.

"Good evening Mr. Saigo," the person said, bowing slightly. "My name is Faron, and I'd here to give you an offer. You see, I represent this group that…"

"Asher," Chris muttered, "go back to sleep."

"W…Wait, what?" Faron asked, clearly confused.

"I know your excited, but the Christmas presents can wait another hour," Chris muttered, covering his head with his blanket.

"Wait, no! I'm not Asher. My name is Faron!" Faron hissed. "Like I was saying, I'm here to…"

"I'm tired Asher," Chris muttered, "I promise, just give me another hour and I'll wake up."

Faron growled in annoyance. "Now listen you, I…."

While this had been going on, the door had quietly opened, and a silent figure walked into the room. The silent figure walked up behind Faron. "Faron!" He hissed.

Faron jumped. "Dah!" Faron turned to the person. "Edon! Don't do that!" Faron hissed.

Edon glared at Faron. "Faron, what're you doing?"

"Well, what does it look like I'm doing?" Faron asked.

"Being an idiot," Edon replied.

"Yeah!" Faron replied without think, "wait no! I'm trying to recruit this Chris guy." Faron gestured at Chris. "I mean, Adelie said to be on the lookout for talented duelists, and this guy did beat Nekkyou and Osore."

"That may be true, but there are two problems with that," Edon. "Number 1, its 2:00 a.m. in the freak'n morning!"

"So?" Faron asked.

"So, know one is going to be able to do much of anything, especially if you've just woken them up!" Edon said. "Number 2, this guy has been pumped full of painkillers! I bet he doesn't even realize we're here! Judging from what I've just heard, he seems to be hallucinating, and seems to think your someone named Asher."

As if to prove his point, Chris muttered, "Asher, will you and your friend go argue somewhere else! I'm trying to sleep!"

Faron sighed. "Okay, point taken."

"Good," Edon said. "Now get us out of here." With a quiet _pop _both Edon and Faron disappeared, leaving Chris to himself and whatever strange dreams his medicine-addled mind could come up with.

* * *

**Rubye's Cards**

**Silverstream Dolphin **

**Type: **monster/water/fish-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1100/700)

**Effect: **During the main phase of the turn after this card is destroyed as a result of battle, special summon a level 2 or lower fish monster from your deck.

**Level Bass**

**Type: **monster/water/fish-effect

**Level: **1

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **When this card is used in a synchro summon when the monster is a water type and the tuner is a water type, this card automatically fulfills the level requirement.

**Sea Dragon Alacuse**

**Type: **monster/water/sea serpent-synchro

**Level: **7

**Stats: **(2500/2100)

**Effect: **Release this card from your side of the field to special summon one water attribute monster from your deck. This is considered to be a normal summon.

**Deep Sea Revival **

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **several large sea creatures rising from the deepest depths of the ocean.

**Effect: **Special summon one water attribute monster from your graveyard to the field in faceup attack mode. During this turn, that monster cannot attack.

**Ikari's Cards**

**Raging Imp **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1700/600)

**Effect: **When another faceup 'Raging Imp' declares an attack, inflict 500 points of damage to your opponent.

**Demon of Wrath**

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(2800/2400)

**Effect: **Select on faceup card on your side of the field and destroy it. Inflict 1000 points of damage to your opponent. This effect can only be used once per turn.

**Ritual of Summoning Wrath**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **three Raging Imp dancing around a bonfire while Demon of Wrath emerges from the flames.

**Effect: **Activate only when you control three 'Raging Imps'. Special summon on 'Demon of Wrath' from your hand or deck. As long as the 'Demon of Wrath' summoned by this card is faceup on the field, the three Raging Imps cannot inflict battle damage to your opponent.

**Protection of the Cursed **

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **several transparent skeletons hanging over a very frightened fiend.

**Effect: **Select one monster on your side of the field. As long as this card is active, the selected card cannot be destroyed as a result of battle. The selected monster cannot attack, and any of its effects are negated.


	23. Artificial Life

One week passed. Although the four missing students had been accounted for, more or less, the curfew had not been lifted. Not that anyone was complaining, they were to scared too. When walking outside close to curfew, or even just walking to class, students were throwing nervous glances over their shoulders, as if expecting some unknown being to jump out and attack. Everyone, however, except for those few people who did know he truth.

And two of those people were currently in the abandon dorm.

Masaru sat at his computer, typing seemingly endless commands into it. In the center of his lab was a giant machine, to which his greatest creation, the human being he had been building from scratch, was hooked up to. Sitting in one corner of the lab was Faron, who reading some sort of magazine. As Masaru typed, a large grin appeared on his face. He typing grew faster, and he was hitting the keys harder. Then suddenly, after slamming down a final key, Masaru jumped up and shouted "IT'S DONE!"

"Wah!" Faron jumped and went sprawling on the floor.

Masaru turned around in surprise. "What, Faron, what are you doing here?"

"I was bored," Faron replied.

Masaru got a look at the cover of the magazine Faron was holding. He frowned. "And you decided to come all the way here just to read a toy catalogue because…?"

Faron shrugged. "I don't know. Do I need a reason?"

Masaru sighed. "Arg, never mind." Masaru walked over to the machine his creation was hooked to and started to unhook him. Faron stepped forward, looking on with interest.

'So, what exactly have you finished?" Faron asked.

"My greatest creation!" Masaru shouted as he completely released his creation from the machine. "Behold, artificial human life!" Standing before them was the human being that Masaru created. He was in shape, and taller than Masaru, but shorter than Faron. He was wearing a light blue shirt, and a pair of blue jeans. In physical appearance, he looked similar to the average teenager, but with two exceptions. His hair and eyes were a light gray color.

"Okay," Faron said, unimpressed, "so, what're you going to do with him?"

"Nothing, yet," Masaru said as he handed his creation a duel disk. The creation took it and snapped it onto his arm without a word. "I'm waiting for instructions from Lady Adelie as to what to do with it."

"Well, you don't have to wait any longer," Faron and Masaru turned to see Adelie emerge from the shadows lining the lab's walls. Faron and Marasu bowed at her apperance. "You said that you had finished it?" she asked.

"Yes," Masaru replied. "It's finished and ready for a test drive." Masaru pulled a small device out of his pocket, which looked similar to a TV remote, and pressed a little red button. The device began to beep softly, and lights lining the length of the device began to light up. Masaru turned to his creation. "Well, you know what to do. Now get going!"

The creation nodded, and ran out of the room. Masaru sat back down at his computer and typed a few more commands into it. Two screens popped up on the monitor. One screen showed an overlay of the island, with a single red glowing dot on it. The second screen showed a first person few of someone running from a building and into the jungle.

"Through several trackers and receivers I planted in its body," Masaru explained, "we can track his every movement. We can also observe and record everything it sees and hears." Masaru smiled with pride. "Since I already went over the details with you, I suppose explain anything else would be redundant."

"Yes it would," Adelie said as she turned from Masaru and Faron. "Call me if anything significant comes up." Adelie walked back into the swirling shadows and disappeared.

Faron looked confused. "Um…you're going to have to explain it to me 'cause I don't have a clue as to what's going on."

Masaru sighed. "Well, to put it simply, it is going to find a dueling computer then duel it. After that, he is to survive on the island on his own until we recall him."

"Okay," Faron said, still a bit unsure. "How exactly is he going to find the duel computer now?"

"Well, since I'm the one who hid it, it will be tracking where I've been," Masaru said. "It won't be hard for it, considering I've enhanced all of its senses and flash taught it all of the greatest tracking techniques I could get my hands on. It won't have trouble surviving on its own either. I flash taught him every survival technique in existence, and designed its body to last without food or water for longer than the average human."

"Alright then," Faron said, trying to pretend to understand. "But one more thing. Does it have a name?"

Masaru shook his head. "No it doesn't. But if you wish to call it something, call it Adam."

"Adam?" Faron said. "You mean like from the book of Genesis?"

"Yes," Masaru said, rising on eyebrow. "But how did you know that?"

"Come on!" Faron yelled in frustration. "I may be dumb, but I'm not that stupid."

"Yeah, I doubt that," Masaru muttered as he turned his attention back to the computer.

* * *

Adam ran into a clearing. He looked around, seeing nothing but black jungle surrounding him. He drew in a deep breath through his nose, trying to gain Masaru's scent. Adam turned his head, getting a weak trace on the scent. Turning to the direction of the scent, Adam ran forward. Now he knew he was in the right direction. Not only was the scent getting stronger, certain details around him, such as trampled plants and broken twigs, suggested that someone had been by earlier.

Adam came to a second clearing. This time Adam was facing the side of a mountain, with a cave entrance slightly sticking out of it. Adam entered the cave. As he did, lights that had been hung in the cave burst into life, temporarily blind Adam. After his eyes adjusted, Adam continued to go deeper into the cave. Adam kept walking until he rounded a bend and came face to face with a small machine. It was a medium sized box shaped device. On its front and top were two small hologram projectors. On its side were two speakers and attached above the speakers were two small cameras. As Adam approached, the machine came to life.

"Duel startup," it said in a machine monotone. "Are you opponent, yes or no?"

"Yes," Adam said in a low voice, while activating his duel disk.

The hologram projectors on the duel computer began to glow and five holographic cards appeared in front of it. "Duel Start."

* * *

Faron and Masaru were watching things unfold back in the lab. Masaru had gotten a clipboard and was ready to take notes, while Faron had somehow gotten a hold of a bag of popcorn.

"By the Masaru," Faron said, while chewing on popcorn. "What kind of deck did you give Adam anyway?"

"You wait 'til now to ask a question like that!" Masaru shouted. Faron gave him a confused look, causing Masaru to sigh and slap his hand over his face. "Just watch the duel!"

* * *

"My turn. Draw," the computer said as a sixth holographic card appeared in front of it. "Summon Gatling Ogre in attack mode (800/800). Next set three cards facedown. Now activating Gatling Ogre's effect. I send two facedown cards to the graveyard to inflect 1600 points of damage to you." Two of the computer's facedown cards shattered, and Gatling Ogre fired the gatling gun in its body at Adam (ALP: 4000-2400).

"Turn end," the computer finished in its monotone.

Adam drew a card. "I play the continuous spell Second Coin Toss. It doesn't do anything yet, so I'll summon Twin-Barrel Dragon (1700/200), which activates its effect. When it's summoned I flip a coin twice." Adam held up a coin to emphasize. "If both result in heads, I can destroy one card you control." Adam flipped the coin, resulting in heads. Adam flipped the coin a second time, resulting in tails. "Now the effect of my Second Coin Toss activates. It negates my Twin-Barrel Dragon and then allows me to redo the coin toss." Adam flipped the coin again, resulting in tails.

"Damn it," Adam muttered, not bothering to flip the coin a second time. "Twin-Barrel Dragon, attack Gatling Ogre!"

"Activate trap card, Negate Attack," the computer said. "Trap stops your attack and ends battle phase."

"I set one card facedown and end my turn," Adam growled.

"My turn. Draw." A new holographic card appeared in front of the duel computer. "Activate spell, Pot of Greed. Allows me to draw two cards." Two more holographic cards appeared. "Set one card. Activate effect of Gatling Ogre." The facedown card shattered, and Gatling Ogre fired another volley at Adam (ALP: 2400-1600). "Sacrifice Gatling Ogre to summon Full Armor Ogre in attack mode (1600/1600). Activate spell card Demonic Gift of Cards. Pay 1000 life points now both players draw until holding five cards (DCLP: 4000-3000)." Five holographic cards appeared in front of the duel computer while Adam drew two cards. "Equip Full Armor Ogre with spell card Power's Residue. Due to Power's Residue, I select one monster in my graveyard then Full Armor Ogre will gain equal to half of the selected monster's attack points. The monster I select is Gatling Ogre (1600-2000/1600). Full Armor Ogre will attack Twin-Barrel Dragon."

"I activate my trap Curse of Anubis!" Adam shouted. A purple aura appeared around Full Armor Ogre and Twin-Barrel Dragon winced as they were forced to one knee (2000/1600-0) 1700/200-0). "You see, this trap switches all effect monsters to defense mode and makes their original defense points 0."

The duel computer stood there in silence for a moment. "Turn end."

Adam drew a card. "I summon Black Salvo in attack mode (100/1100). Now I tune my level 3 Black Salvo to my level 4 Twin-Barrel Dragon!" Black Salvo shattered and became three green rings that flew into the air, each in line with each other. Twin-Barrel Dragon jumped into the air and floated into the center of the three rings. It body began to glow brightly and change shape, forming a new monster.

"Synchro summon, Artillery Dragon (2000/26000)!" With a loud roar, Adam's new monster appeared on the field. It was painted a light gray color. It had a small, mechanized dragonhead, with several large metal teeth lining its mouth. It was attach to a short neck, which was attached to its cylinder shaped body. It was standing on four, short legs. Sticking out on both sides of its body were long, mechanized dragon wings. Directly on it back was a large cannon that looked similar to an oversized M777 howitzer. A long metal tail was attached to the other end of the monster's body.

"Now I activate Artillery Dragon's effect! I flip a coin, if heads, I can destroy a card you control." Adam flipped a coin, resulting in heads. "Yes! Now Artillery Dragon, destroy Full Armor Ogre!" The cannon on Artillery Dragon's back lowered so it was aiming at Full Armor Ogre, and fired. The shell flew through the air and it Full Armor Ogre, and exploded, destroying Full Armor Ogre.

"Full Armor Ogre's effect activates," the duel computer said. "When it is sent from the field to the graveyard, Gatling Ogre is special summoned from the cemetery." Gatling Ogre reappeared on the field (800/800).

"Alright then. Artillery Dragon, destroy Gatling Ogre!" Artillery Dragon fired its cannon at Gatling Ogre, destroying it (DCLP: 3000-1800). "I then set one card facedown and end my turn."

"My turn. Draw." A new card appeared in front of the duel computer. "Summon Gatling Ogre in attack mode (800/800). Set one card facedown. Activate effect of Gatling Ogre. Remove set card to inflict 800 points of damage." The facedown card shattered, and Gatling Ogre fired a volley at Adam (ALP: 1600-800). "Activate effect of Big Cannon Ogre. I tribute Gatling Ogre to special summon Big Cannon Ogre in attack mode (2400/2400). Big Cannon Ogre, attack and destroy Artillery Dragon!"

"I activate the trap Waboku!" Adam shouted. "This keeps you from destroy my monster or inflicting any damage to me this turn."

"Turn end," the duel computer said.

Adam drew a card. "I activate the spell card polymerization! This spell card will fuse the Barrel Dragon and Blowback Dragon to fusion summon Gatling Dragon (2600/1200)! Now I activate Gatling Dragon's effect! I flip a coin three times and for each heads, I get to destroy one of your monsters!" Adam flipped a coin, resulting in tails. Adam flipped the coin again, resulting in heads. "Gatling Dragon, destroy Big Cannon Ogre!" The gatling gun on Gatling Dragon's right arm fired a volley at Big Cannon Ogre, destroying it.

"Activate Big Cannon Ogre's effect," the duel computer said. "When destroyed, I'm allowed to special summon Full Armor Ogre." Full Armor Ogre reappeared on the field (1600/1600).

Adam flipped the coin for a third time, resulting in tails. "Not that it matters," Adam commented. "Artillery Dragon, destroy Full Armor Ogre!" Artillery Dragon fired a shell at Full Armor Ogre, which exploded after hitting Full Armor Ogre, destroying it (DCLP: 1800-1400).

"Activate effect of Full Armor Ogre," the duel computer said. "When sent from the field to the graveyard, I special summon Gatling Ogre from the graveyard." Gatling Ogre reappeared on the field (800/800).

"Gatling Dragon, destroy Gatling Ogre! End this duel!" Gatling Dragon aimed all three of its gatling guns at Gatling Ogre, and fired. The hail of bullets torn into Gatling Ogre, and destroyed it (DCLP: 1400-0).

The instant the duel computer's life points hit 0, the projectors started to flash. "Duel end. Outcome; lose. Beginning shutdown." The duel computer flickered for a few seconds before becoming silent and still. Adam shutoff his duel disk and looked around him.

He realized that he was beginning to like this cave. It provided him a good place to hid, and good shelter. It was deep in the jungle so no one was likely to come across it by accident. It was also near a river and small pond, which provided a source of water and a bit of food. Adam wanted to go out and do something, but he found himself to be extremely tired. He sat down, laid up against the softest patch of cave wall he could find, and almost instantly went to sleep.

* * *

Back in the lab, Masaru had flipped off the monitor when Adam had won the duel. Faron, having finished his popcorn, threw the crumpled bag over his shoulder as he stood up. "So, what now?"

"I don't know what you're doing," Masaru said, trying to stifle a yawn, "but I'm going to bed, good night." Masaru began flipping off the lab's several machines. Faron sighed, and disappeared with a quite _pop_, just as Masaru finished locking up the lab. Stifling another yawn, Masaru walked off and went to bed.

* * *

**Adam's Card(s)**

**Artillery Dragon **

**Type: **monster/dark/machine-effect/synchro

**Level: **7

**Stats: **(2000/2600)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] Once per turn, flip a coin. If heads, destroy one card your opponent controls.

**Duel Computer's Card(s)**

**Demonic Gift of Cards**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **demons taking cards from two duelist's decks and add them to their respective hands.

**Effect: **Pay 1000 life points. Both players draw until they have five cards in their hands.


	24. Respite and Sparring

Two weeks passed. And to everyone's relief, absolutely nothing happened. No attacks, no disappearances, no homicidal maniacs, no random, un-normal happenings of any kind. But then again, normal happenings were low as well. Most of the students, when not in class, spent a lot of there time shut up in their dorms. The lack of anything weird happening had not gone far to decrease the paranoia of the students. But on the positive side, or at least to some, was that this caused a drop in troublemaking among the students. The drop was so dramatic that some teachers were heard to wonder why things that scare students into line didn't happen more often.

The four responsible for these recent turn of events, Eiji Mori, Katsu Tanaka, and the other two, revealed to be Mari Kinjo and Nobu Maeda, had be transferred to an hospital on the main land for further study. The results of these studies, or wither they were done or not, had not be released. But most of the older students had their own opinions as to what they might find.

At this point, the Academy faculty tried to divert the student's attention from the recent turn of events to the National Academy Championship. Overnight, large posters had gone up all over the island. The posters were a bright orange, making the posters hard to miss. The Academy symbol was placed in the center, with the words 'support our representatives' surrounding it. Pictures of all ten representatives, Chris, Caden, Dustin, Rubye, Trevor, Alexandria, Faron, Edon. Myrine, and Peter, were placed in a circular pattern around the Academy symbol.

Currently, all ten representatives were in a meeting with Chancellor Arthur, Professor Aaron, and Professor Anthia. The meeting was taking place in the conference room. Chancellor Arthur and Professor Aaron were seated at the end of the table. Trevor and Alexandria was seat very close together, near Chancellor Arthur and Professor Aaron. Peter and Myrine were sitting by themselves at the other end of the room. Edon and Faron were sitting together, arguing over something stupid Faron had done. Caden and Dustin were sitting near the door, discussing D-Wheels. Rubye, Chris and Anthia were near the door. Anthia was standing, Rubye was sitting in a chair she had pulled up, and Chris was in a wheelchair.

In the past two weeks, Chris had healed rather well, or at least that's what the nurses were telling him. While the nurses had been reluctant to let Chris out of bed, they had agreed on the condition that Chris restrict his movements to as little as possible. Chris's body was still covered in bandages, which needed changing every day or so. They were also keeping Chris on a few painkillers as well. But unlike before, Chris was mostly aware of what was going on around him. Occasionally, however, they would cause Chris's brain to convince him of things that weren't actually real.

Chancellor Arthur coughed, gaining everyone's attention. "Well now, since we've finally managed to get everyone together, I think we can get started." He looked around the room at them, his gaze lingering on Chris for a moment. "First off, I'd like to congratulate all of you on your remarkable achievement of getting this far. I'm sure it was a lot of hard work."

Faron smirked. "It wasn't for me."

Edon smacked him in the back of the head. "Shut up, Faron."

Chancellor Arthur gave Edon a stern look. "Mr. Ando, please refrain from hitting your fellow students." Faron snickered, but faltered when Chancellor Arthur's gaze turned on him. "And you, Mr. Egawa, stop encouraging him." Faron sunk low in his seat, too low unfortunately, and ended up sliding off his seat. Muttering curses under his breath, Faron climbed back onto his seat.

"Moving on," Chancellor Arthur said slowly, "I think I should explain in a bit more detail what being our representatives means, besides dueling."

"Like what?" Caden asked.

"For starters, you're excepted to behave yourselves," Arthur said, glaring at Faron and Edon. "Your behavior will reflect the overall image of our academy. Secondly, there is going to be massive media coverage of the tournament. So expect tons of interviews, press conferences, and stuff like that. Also, expect them to take everything you say out of context and twist it into whatever lie they feel like."

"Oh lovely," Peter muttered under his breath.

"Another thing I need to mention is that the Tournament will be kicked off with a ball of sorts," Arthur continued.

"A ball!" Dustin exclaimed. "You mean like a dance, right?"

"Yes," Arthur said. "It's not going to be too formal. Only the guests will have to wear formal attire. You, on the other hand, are only required to wear your school uniforms." Arthur smiled in Chris's direction. "Unfortunately, Mr. Saigo, but you're going to have to sit that one out."

Chris tried to laugh, but only managed a sheepish grin. "I can't dance anyway."

Arthur tried to laugh, but he found that he didn't have the heart to. "Anyway, are there any questions regarding the Tournament?"

Trevor raised his hand. "How will we know who were dueling?"

"It's sort of set up in an bracket system," Arthur explained. "It will be one school against another, to prevent duelists from the same school to face each other, or at least in the first round. After that, it'll be a free-for-all between the twenty remaining duelists, so you could be facing your fellow students at that point."

Dustin then raised his hand. "What is the point of this Tournament anyway?"

Arthur smiled. "Between the Duel Academies, there has always been a fierce rivalry. Some of the Chancellors have been pushing for this sort of thing for years now." Arthur's smile grew wider. "There is also going to be a prize for the winner, but I'm not at liberty to disclose what it is yet. Now, are there anymore questions?" No one moved.

"Chancellor," Professor Aaron said, "Forgive him if this is off topic, I suggest that each of our representatives have the occasional sparing match against each other."

"That's a good idea Professor Aaron," Arthur said. "It'd be good for you to hone each other's skills, especially with the tournament so close. So, do we have any volunteers?"

"Um…I have a request," Caden said, attracting everyone's attention. "I would like to duel the Kaiser."

Trevor smiled. "No need to be so formal! Of course I'll duel you." After ten minutes, The group had moved to the auditorium, minus Myrine, who had disappeared to wherever since the meeting was over and watching the duel was optional. The seating over everyone was all over the place. Arthur, Aaron, and Alexandria were sitting in the very front row. Edon and Faron were sitting on the far side of the auditorium, in a row halfway up. Chris, Rubye, and Anthia were on the top floor behind the rows, due to the limitations of Chris's wheelchair. Dustin was sitting in the row right in front of them. Peter leaned against the wall by himself at the far end of the auditorium. Caden and Trevor were on the dueling field, duel disks active and ready to duel.

"If you don't mind," Caden said, drawing a card, "I'll start us off. I summon Drillroid in attack mode (1600/1600). Next I set two cards facedown and end my turn."

Trevor drew a card. "I summon Axe Dragonute in attack mode (2000/1000). Next I activate the spell card Infernal Dragon Roar! This spell card, as long as I control a dragon type monster, destroys all facedown spell and traps on the field!" A bright, crimson red aura appeared around Axe Dragonute. It threw its head back and roared, releasing a crimson red shockwave, shattering Caden's two set cards.

"Yeah, well, one of those cards you destroyed was a trap called Wonder Garage!" Caden said, hold up the card so Trevor could see it. "When it's sent from the field to the graveyard when it was facedown, I can special summon level 4 or lower 'roid' monster from my deck. I special summon Decoyroid in defense mode (300/500)."

Trevor shrugged. "Interesting. Axe Dragonute, destroy Drillroid!" Axe Dragonute roared and charge towards Drillroid, lifting its axe high. Suddenly, Axe Dragonute's attack changed direction and brought its axe down on Decoyroid, destroying it." Trevor raised an eyebrow. "You'll have to explain what just happened."

"That was Decoyroid's effect," Caden explained. "When it is faceup on the field, you can only chose it as an attack target."

"Interesting," Trevor commented. "By the by, Axe Dragonute switches to defense mode when it attacks," Trevor said as it kneeled down. "So I'll end my turn by placing one card facedown."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Patroid in attack mode (1200/1200). Now I activate Patroid's effect, allowing me to look at your facedown card." Trevor's card flipped up, revealing it to be Negate Attack. Caden sighed. "Oh well, Drillroid, destroy Axe Dragonute!" Drillroid drove forward.

"Negate Attack," Trevor said simply as the trap activated. A large vortex appeared in front of Axe Dragonute, absorbing the attack.

"I set one card facedown and end my turn," Caden said.

Trevor drew a card. "I sacrifice my Axe Dragonute to tribute summon Strong Wind Dragon in attack mode (2400-3400/1000)."

Caden's eyes widened. "Wait, why did your Strong Wind Dragon gain 1000 attack points?"

"You see," Trevor explained. "When I sacrifice a dragon type monster to tribute summon Strong Wind Dragon, it gains attack points equal to half of the attack points of the sacrificed monster. Now, Strong Wind Dragon, attack Patroid!" Strong Wind Dragon roared and opened its jaws wide.

Caden smiled. "This should look familiar. Go, Negate Attack!" The all too familiar vortex appeared in front of Patroid, absorbing Strong Wind Dragon's attack.

Trevor shrugged again. "I end my turn by setting one card facedown."

Caden drew a card. "I summon Submarineroid in attack mode (800/1800). Now Submarineroid, attack Trevor's life points directly!" Submarineroid dropped its torpedo, which buried itself into the ground. The torpedo burrowed itself, blasted out of the ground, and exploded right in front of Trevor (TLP: 4000-3200).

"Oh yes, interesting effect, Submarineroid," Trevor said, rubbing his chin. "No need to explain what happens next."

Caden closed his mouth, which he had opened to explain Submarineroid's effect. "I switch Patroid and Drillroid to defense mode. I end my turn by setting one card facedown."

Trevor drew a card. "I summon Vanguard of the Dragon in attack mode (1700/1300). Now Strong Wind Dragon will attack Submarineroid!" Strong Wind Dragon roared loudly, and made several beats of its wings, blowing away Submarineroid.

"By the way," Trevor added. "Strong Wind Dragon has a piercing effect (CLP: 4000-2400). Now, Vanguard of the Dragon will destroy Patroid!" Vanguard of the Dragon charged forward and stabbed Patroid with its lance, destroying it. "And I think I'll end by playing a facedown."

Caden drew a card. "I activate the trap Call of the Haunted! This trap allows me to bring back my Submarineroid. But that doesn't matter, because it won't be around for long. But first, I summon Steamroid in attack mode (1800/1800). Now I activate the spell card Vechictoid Connection Zone to fuse Submarineroid, Steamroid, and Drillroid to fusion summon **Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill **(3000/2000)! The earth shook violently, as the large, purple and pink submarine with the large drill on its nose smashed up through the ground. "Now I active the equip spell card Roid Scrap Armor! This equip card gives my Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill an extra 300 attack points for every 'roid' monster in my graveyard (3000-4500/2000)." Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill glowed as bits of Steamroid, Submarineroid, Drillroid, Patroid, and Decoyroid appeared on it. "Now Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill, destroy Strong Wind Dragon!" Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill rolled forward and simultaneously crushed and ripped apart Strong Wind Dragon (TLP: 3200-2100).

"I activate the trap Den of Dragons!" Trevor shouted. "When a lose a dragon monster, this handy little trap allows me to special summon a dragon of an equal level. In this case, it has to be level 6! So now I special summon Des Volstgalph (2200/1700)."

Caden eyed Des Volstgalph warily. He could guess that Trevor was going to use it in some way to destroy Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill. Not that there was anything he could do about it at the moment. The cards in his hand were useless in regards to protecting monsters. There was only one thing he could do. "I end my turn," he said.

Trevor drew a card. "I activate the spell Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards." Trevor drew two cards from his deck. "I summon Delta Fly in attack mode (1500/900). Now I active the spell card Mystical Space Typhoon, which allows me to destroy Roid Scrap Armor!" A small typhoon appeared and blew away the bits of scrap attached to Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill (4500-3000/2000). Now I activate the effect of my Delta Fly! Once per turn, I can increase the level of one other monster I control by one. So I chose to increase Des Volstgalph level to 7. Now I tune my level 3 Delta Fly with my now level 7 Des Volstgalph!" Delta Fly shattered, and three small orbs flew into the air, along with Des Volstgalph. Three green rings appeared around Des Volstgalph and the three orbs fused into Des Volstgalph. Des Volstgalph became transparent and started to change shape.

"Synchro summon, **Trident Dragon **(3000/2800)!"

The auditorium trembled as three loud roars emanated for the monster appearing behind Trevor. It was a large, three head dragon. The three heads roared again as they glared down upon the field. "Now I activate Trident Dragon's effect! Go!" One of Trident Dragon's heads bet down and shot a stream of flame at Vanguard of the Dragon, destroying it. "You see, when Trident Dragon is summoned I can remove up to two cards from my field. Then my Trident Dragon gains an extra attack for each card I destroyed. In other words, my Trident Dragon gets to attack twice this turn! Next I equip Trident Dragon with the equip spell card Dragon Nails, which gives my Trident Dragon an extra 600 attack points (3000-3600/2800)! Now Trident Dragon, destroy Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill!" Trident Dragon's three heads roar and shot three streams of flame at Super Vechicroid Jumbo Drill, destroying it in the blazing flames (CLP: 2400-1800).

"End this duel Trident Dragon! Attack his life points directly!" Trident Dragon roared again, and blasted Caden with three streams of flame (CLP: 1800-0).

Caden fell to his knees as his life points hit 0. He sighed. "Oh well, there's always next time I suppose."

"Don't feel to down about it," Trevor said, as he walked over to Caden. He helped Caden to his feet. "It was still a good showing." By this point, all the representatives, teachers, and a few other people who had come to watch were all applauding for the two. All except one. Peter was emotionlessly stared down at the field, contemplating. Whatever he was thinking, he kept to himself as he turned and walked away.

* * *

A few hours passed. The sun was setting low over Duel Academy. Long shadows crossed over the landscape. The temperature slowly dropped as the day ended. A small, cooling breeze had started up, blowing across the island. Down at one of the many beaches, Chris sat in his wheelchair on the concrete path. Rubye stood a few feet in front of him. Although it was both Rubye and Chris's idea to watch the sunset, Rubye was the one who was enjoying it the most, although this was not from a lack of trying. Chris was trying hard to enjoy the scene in front of him, but the fact that he was stuck in a wheelchair and the sick feeling the painkillers were giving him were making themselves present with an unfortunate regularity.

In spite of his problems, Chris did manage to take in some of the beauty. The bright sunset, casting its long shadows that mixed with its sparkling light. The pleasing quietness, the lapping of the waves and the distant call of some animal were the only thing to be heard. The light breeze which was soothing against his warm skin. Then there was Rubye. Her excellent figure was silhouetted in the rays of the setting sun. Her soft, autumn brown hair being gently blown around her in the breeze. Chris would have liked to take in more of the scene, but he began to fall into one of his painkiller-induced deliriums. Chris's head slumped over onto his shoulder and he half closed his eyes.

Rubye turned around and noticed this. She walked to Chris and turned his wheelchair around. "Time to get you off to bed," she said softly.

"Yes, I suppose," Chris muttered. Rubye wheeled Chris back to his hospital room. She pushed Chris along in silence until Chris straightened up suddenly. He turned his head so he was facing her, somewhat. His glassy eyes stared into hers. "Rubye, I think I love you."

This caught Rubye completely off guard. She blushed madly as she thought of something to say. "I think I love you too, Chris." Rubye had no idea why she had said that. Although she was slightly embarrassed, she also found that she didn't care. Chris smiled at her sheepishly. He relaxed back into the wheelchair and, to Rubye's surprise, fell asleep. She wheeled Chris back to the hospital ward of the Academy. Before handing him off to the nurse, Rubye kissed Chris on the cheek and said "Goodnight, Chris," before walking off to the Obelisk Girl Dorm.

Unbeknownst to anyone, Chris and Rubye's little exchange had not gone unwatched. Adam, while searching for food, had accidentally stumbled across the two. Preplexed by what the two were doing, Adam had hid himself and watched the whole thing. To say he was confused would be an understatement. Adam was forced to reach back into his memory and replay in his mind all of the flash teaching Masaru had given him.

"Is this 'Love'?" He said out loud to himself. While Adam had been taught what emotions were, he by no means knew how to understand them. Give up his quest for food and ignoring the protests of his stomach, Adam returned to the cave. This was going to require some serious contemplation.

* * *

**Caden's Card(s)**

**Roid Scrap Armor**

**Type: **equip spell

**Image: **bits of a Steamroid, Patroid, and Jetroid attaching themselves to a Submarineroid

**Effect: **this card can only be equipped to a machine type 'roid' monster. The equipped monster gains 300 attack points for each 'roid' monster in your graveyard.

**Trevor's Card(s)**

**Infernal Dragon Roar**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **a Blue Eyes White Dragon roaring into the air while the ground shatters below it.

**Effect: **This card can only be activate if you control only dragon type monster(s). Destroy all facedown spell and traps on the field.


	25. QA and a Riding Duel

"Where am I?"

This was the question Chris was asking himself, observing the surroundings around him. He was on some sort of dirt trail, which stretched out in front and behind him. Brown, half dead grass lined the trail. A light fog was descending upon the trail, making what lay ahead of him impossible to see. Chris walked forward, his arms held up in front of him.

"How did I get here?"

That was another question running through Chris's mind. The last thing he remembered was lying in his bed while the nurses were giving him another shot of painkillers. Chris decided that it was a dream. But it was unlike any other dream he had had before. It felt so real to him. It actually felt like he was standing there. He actually felt the dampness of the fog surrounding him. He actually saw his surroundings around him. But how was this even possible?

Chris was jerked out of his ponderings when a new thing made itself present. It was a sound, a loud, clanking sound. Chris could best describe it as some one walking around and carrying several large metal plates. Chris's guess was proven half right. The fog in front of Chris suddenly dispersed. There, standing a few feet from Chris was a man in a full suit of armor, covering him from head to foot. The man made no move towards Chris. He just stood there, staring at him.

"Who are you?" Chris called to the man.

"That," the man replied, "is of no importance, or at least not to you at any rate."

"Then where am I? Why am I here?" Chris asked.

"In answer to your first question, I've no idea where we are," the man replied. "In answer to your second question, you're here to receive some information from me."

"What kind of information?" Chris asked.

"Information in regards to the duelists who caused your current condition," the man replied.

"What…" Chris stuttered, caught off guard.

"Look, our time grows short so I'll be quick," the man said, looking around at what surrounding them. That was when Chris noticed that everything around them was fading away into a pale, white light. "Remember that Obelisk Blue girl you dueled a while back?" Chris nodded. "Well, I know she was behind it, or at least orchestrated it at any rate. Also watch an Obelisk Blue boy named Masaru. I know he had something to do with it. Also watch Faron, Myrine, and Edon too. I know for a fact that they had something involvement in it."

"Can you tell me why they did it?" Chris asked. By this point, only the trail still remained. Everything else had faded away.

The man shrugged. "Sorry. I'm as clueless as you are in that regard." Then the man himself began to fade away. "Looks like our time is up. Now remember what I told, watch them closely, I know they're up to something."

"One last thing," Chris said. "Is this all real, or has it been happening inside my head?"

The man laughed. By this point, the man had completely faded away, but Chris could still him. His voice echoed as if he were a long way away. "Of course its all been happening inside your head. But since when did that mean it wasn't real?"

Chris whited out, and knew no more.

* * *

The next morning, Chris sat propped up in his bed with several cards spread out on a special table that he had swung across his bed. He examined each card, and then placed them in several separate piles. Chris sighed. Upgrading his deck was tedious work, but it was necessary. At least he would have some privacy though. Most of the students were in class, which he was exempted from do to his injuries.

Bur no matter how hard he tried to concentrate, his dream kept forcing itself to the forefront of his mind. Chris couldn't help but think that he had seen the armored man before. Everything about the man seemed vaguely familiar. The man's style of armor, its color, and its physical appearance all seemed familiar. He racked his brain, trying to bring up the memory. Unfortunately, all that happened was that Chris developed a headache. He groaned, clutching at his head. The last thing he needed was more pain.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," Chris said, expecting it to be Rubye. He was surprised when Trevor and Alexandra walked through the door.

"Hello Chris!" Trevor said joyfully. "Here to see everybody's favorite laid up duelist."

"And to ask a few questions," Alexandra added calmly. ""If that's alright with you."

"Sure," Chris replied. "Ask away."

Trevor and Alexandra pulled up two chairs. "We wanted to ask you about your duels with Nekkyou and Osore."

"I should've figured that," Chris muttered.

"If you don't want to talk now," Trevor started.

"No, no, no," Chris said quickly, "ask me anything and I'll try to answer you."

"Alright," Alexandra began. "Did either of them say who they were working for?"

Chris thought about it for a moment. "Well, Nekkyou was barely coherent. As for Osore, he was too busy trying to kill, and I was too busy trying to save Rubye and stay alive to ask anything."

"Okay," Trevor said. "What exactly did they do that caused you to get these injuries?"

"I don't know what they did," Chris said, "but they somehow many the duels real! It was like everything was really happening, not just holograms!"

Trevor and Alexandra glanced at each other nervously. "Shadow duel." They said simultaneously."

"Shadow duel?" Chris said, confused.

"To make a long story short," Trevor said. "It is an ancient magic that make the duels real. No matter what you duel with, everything will really happen."

"You're lucky you won," Alexandra said. "If you had lost, your soul would have been consumed by darkness."

"Meaning…" Chris asked.

"You'd be worse than dead," Alexandra said quietly. Chris noticed that after saying this, something seemed to change in Alexandra. She looked sad, and possibly on the verge of tears.

Trevor noticed this too. He jumped up. "Look at the time!" he shouted. "Class starts in 5 minutes. Sorry, but we've got to go." Trevor shook Chris hand. "Thank you for your time." Alexandra got up, and was lead by Trevor towards the door.

"Wait, there's one more thing I should add," Chris said.

Trevor turned to face him. "What would that be?"

"Last night, I had some sort of vision," Chris said.

"A vision?"

"Yes," Chris continued, "I was warned by a spirit, or something, to watch some people. An Obelisk Blue girl named Adelie, three of our representatives, Faron, Edon, and Myrine, and someone I don't know named Masaru. I don't know if it means anything, just though you ought to know."

"I'll make a note of it, thanks," Trevor said as he and Alexandria left the room.

The second the door closed behind them, Alexandra began to cry softly. Trevor swung an arm around her shoulders, drawing her into an embrace. "It seems like something left over from last year," Trevor said.

"It appears so," Alexandra said. "Oh Trevor, I though it would be over, but its not! Last year is still here to haunt us!" She began to cry harder. "If it's true, Oliver died for nothing!"

"Don't say that!" Trevor said sharply. "Oliver died save your life, and mine. That's something, isn't it?" Alexandra nodded, but continued to cry. Trevor lead her away to a nice, private spot in the jungle were Alexandra could cry on his shoulder and where he could comfort her, away from prying eyes.

* * *

It was a good day for a ride on a motorcycle. Dustin marveled at his luck as he sat straddling the Academy issue D-Wheel on the Academy's Riding Duel Track. Being the Riding Duel representative for Duel Academy and considering it had been a while since he had been in a riding duel, he really needed the practice. The stadium surrounding the track was about ¼ of the way full of students who had nothing better to do. Even Taro was there MC'ing. Dustin sighed as he leaned back in his seat. His opponent, a Ra Yellow named Norio Arai, was much more tense. He nervously scanned the gauges on is D-Wheel, make last minute checks.

"Now lets start this riding duel started!" Taro shouted, his amplified voice echoing through the stadium. "Dustin Seo versus Norio Arai! Riding Duel, acceleration!"

With a loud roar of engines and squeal of tires, the two D-Wheels roared down the track. "First person around the turn gets the first move!" Dustin shouted to Norio. Norio nodded in nervous agreement. It wasn't much of a contest, or at least for Dustin. He easily managed to pull head of Norio and make a really tight turn, leaving Norio a ways behind.

"I draw!" Dustin shouted, drawing his sixth card (SC: D-1, N-0). "I summon Pursuit Chaser in attack mode (1400/600). Next, I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Norio drew his sixth card (SC: D-1, N-1. "I summon Steel Clad Defense Golem in attack mode (0/2200)." A large, metal gray thing appeared next to Norio's D-Wheel. It had a box like body, with two stubby arms and two stubby legs. A small, watermelon shaped head was perched on its large body. "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Dustin drew a card (SC: D-2, N-2). "Go Pursuit Chaser, attack Steel Clad Defense Golem!" Pursuit Chaser blasted towards Steel Clad Defense Golem, its claws outstretched.

"The effect of my Steel Clad Defense Golem activates!" Norio shouted. "When it is attacked, its battle position changed!" Steel Clad Defense Golem fell to one knee, crossing its stubby arms across its chest. Pursuit Chaser slammed into Steel Clad Defense Golem and bounce off. It spun out of control for a bit before regaining control and it returned to its place beside Dustin's D-Wheel (DLP: 4000-3200).

"Dang it," Dustin muttered. "I finish my turn by summoning Second Booster in attack mode (1000/500)."

Norio drew a card (SC: D-3, N-3). "I activate my trap Defensive Attack Tactics! Once per turn, this trap will switch the attack and defense points of one of my monsters. So I chose to switch the attack and defense points of my Steel Clad Defense Golem (0-2200/2200-0). Now I switch my Steel Clad Defense Golem to attack mode, and attack you Second Booster!" Steel Clad Defense Golem lumbered forward, raising its metal fist high.

"I activate the trap Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Dustin shouted. "This trap blocks your attack, and returns back to my field facedown!" A small scarecrow made out of bits and pieces of rusting scrap appeared in front of Second Booster, blocking Steel Clad Defense Golem's attack. There was a loud **clank **as Steel Clad Defense Golem's attack slammed into Scrape-Iron Scarecrow, and then it lumbered back to Norio's side of the field.

"I set on monster in defense mode and end my turn," Norio said (2200-0/0-2200).

Dustin drew a card (SC: D-4, N-4). "I summon Speed Biker in attack mode (1600/900). Now I activate the effect of my Second Booster! I can tribute it to allow one of my monsters, my Pursuit Chaser to be specific, cans 1500 attack points!" Second Booster moved over to Pursuit Chaser and attached itself to it (1400-2900/600). "Now Pursuit Chaser, destroy Steel Clad Defense Golem!" This time, Pursuit Chaser blasted through Steel Clad Defense Golem as it switched to defense mode, shattering it into several pieces. "Now my Pursuit Chaser's effect actives! Whenever a monster in defense mode is destroyed, you get hit with 500 points of damage (NLP: 4000-3500)! Now my Speed Biker will attack your set monster!"

The streamlined motorcycle raised its front wheel and made an incredibly sharp turn. It then sped towards the facedown monster. The card flipped up, revealing a large, machine, its parts folded inwards to create a sphere shape. Speed Biker hit the monster head-on, and was sent flying into the air. It hit the ground and was sent cartwheeling behind the two riding duelists. Speed Biker appeared next to Dustin's D-Wheel moments later (DLP: 3200-2600).

"It'll take more than that to take down my Gear Golem the Moving Fortress (800/2200)!" Norio shouted.

"I end my turn," Dustin growled.

Norio drew a card. (SC: D-5, N-5) "I play the speed spell Normal Booster! If I sacrifice 5 speed counters, I can special summon a normal monster of any level from my hand. So I special summon Total Defense Shogun in defense mode (1550/2500). Now I activate the effect of Defensive Attack Tactics, switching the attack and defense points of my Gear Golem the Moving Fortress (800-2200/2200-800). Now Gear Golem the Moving Fortress, attack Speed Biker!"

"I activate Scrape-Iron Scarecrow!" Dustin shouted. The small, rusting scarecrow appeared in front of Speed Biker, taking Gear Golem the Moving Fortress's attack.

"Alright, but I'm not done!" Norio shouted. "You see, my Total Defense Shogun is allowed to attack even when it's in defense mode! Now Total defense shogun will attack your Pursuit Chaser!" Total Defense Shogun drew his large sword, charged forward, and sliced Pursuit Chaser in half (DLP: 2600-2550). "I'll end my turn by placing one card facedown and setting a monster in defense mode."

Dustin drew a card (SC: D-6, N-1). "I summon Sonic Duck in attack mode (1700/700)."

Norio laughed. "Man, that monster looks ridiculous!"

"Oh shut up," Dustin growled. "Now Speed Biker will attack your Gear Golem the Moving Fortress!" Speed Biker made another sharp turn and sped towards Gear Golem the Moving Fortress.

"I activate my trap Negate Attack!" Norio shouted.

"Then I activate my Speed Biker's effect!" Dustin shouted. "During the battle phase, he can negate the activation of a trap card!" Norio gasped as his Negate Attack shattered. Speed Biker slammed straight into Gear Golem the Moving Fortress, destroying it (NLP: 3500-2700). "Now Sonic Duck, attack Norio's facedown!" Sonic Duck sped forward, and pounced down on the facedown card. Unfortunately, it bounced off as a giant, green stone statue appeared (DLP: 2550-1950).

"This is my Stone Statue of the Aztecs (300/2000)," Norio said, gesturing to his monster. "And one more thing I should mention, any battle damage done involving this monster is doubled, so you lost 600 life points, instead of 300."

"I set one card facedown and end my turn," Dustin muttered.

Norio drew a card (SC: D-7, N-2). "I summon Cannon Wheel in attack mode (500/500). Now I tune my level 2 Cannon Wheel with my level 6 Total Defense Shogun!" Cannon Wheel shattered and became three green rings. The three rings flew into the air, along with Total Defense Shogun. Total Defense Shogun floated into the center of the rings. It started to glow, became transparent and began to change shape.

"Synchro summon! Total Defense Cannon (0/3000)!" A large dome shaped machine appeared next to Norio's D-Wheel. It was an overall dark blue color with black highlighting around plates of armor. On top of the dome sat a large, cartoon cannon. "Now the effect of my Cannon Wheel activates. When it is used in a synchro summon, you get hit with 500 points of damage (DLP: 1950-1450). Now I activate my Total Defense Cannon's effect! If I skip my battle phase, you'll get hit with 1000 points of damage!" The cannon on Total Defense Cannon aimed itself at Dustin, and fired. The shell hit just a bit in front of Dustin's D-Wheel. The resulting explosion caused Dustin D-Wheel to wobble, but he quickly regained control (DLP: 1450-450). "I think I'll end my turn at that."

Dustin drew a card (SC: D-7, N-3). "I activate my trap Trade in for Tuning! This trap allows me to add a tuner monster from my deck to my hand if I discard a card from my deck." Dustin discarded a card, and pulled a card out of his deck. "Now I'll summon that tuner, Nitro Synchron (300/100). Now I'll activate the effect of the card I just discarded, a monster called Quillbolt Hedgehog (800/800). When I have a tuner on my field, I can special summon Quillbolt Hedgehog from my graveyard. Now I tune my level 2 Nitro Synchron with my level 2 Quillbolt Hedgehog and my level 3 Sonic Duck!" Nitro Synchron shattered and became three green rings. The three rings flew into the air, along with Quillbolt Hedgehog and Sonic Duck. The two monsters positioned themselves in the middle of the rings. Sonic Duck and Quillbolt Hedgehog began to glow, became transparent, and began to merge and change shape.

"Synchro summon! Nitro Warrior (2800/1800)!" There was a loud roar as the green, goblin like warrior appeared next to Dustin's D-Wheel.

"Now I activate the speed spell Shift Down!" Dustin shouted. "If I pay 6 speed counters, I get to draw two cards!" Dustin's D-Wheel slowed significantly as he drew two cards. "This in turn activates the effect of my Nitro Warrior! He gains 1000 attack points whenever I activate a spell card (2800-3800/1800). Now Nitro Warrior, attack Total Defense Cannon!" Nitro Warrior blasted into the air, and dived down on Total Defense Cannon with its large fists raised. Nitro Warrior slammed into Total Defense Cannon, destroying it.

Norio growled in anger. "This isn't over!"

"Yes it is," Dustin said coolly. "You see, when Nitro Warrior destroys a monster, it switches a monster you control that is in defense mode into attack mode and Nitro Warrior is then allowed to attack that monster!" The kneeling Stone Statue of the Aztecs stood up into attack mode. "Nitro Warrior, attack Stone Statue of the Aztecs!" Nitro Warrior blasted towards Stone Statue of the Aztecs and gave it a powerful uppercut, destroying it (NLP: 2700-0).

"The winner is Dustin Seo!" Taro shouted. Dustin pumped is fist into the air and take a victory lap around the track.

* * *

Chancellor Arthur sighed as he watched a helicopter fly of into the distance from his office window. He sighed as he looked down at the four files sitting on his desk. Chancellor Arthur unceremoniously pushed the files off his desk into a trashcan and turned his gaze back to the helicopter shrinking into the distance. The helicopter contained the four duelists who had been known as Osore, Nekkyou, Urei, and Ikari. The helicopter disappeared into the distance. He turned from the window.

Arthur was deeply worried. He had had enough trouble in this job already. Even without the supernatural problems, it was a stressful job as it was.

"Damn it," Arthur muttered softly.

The last thing Arthur wanted was a repeat of last year. That would completely drive him over the edge. It had been bad enough to explain it to the parents, what their children had done. Some had broken down, while others simply chose not to believe him. The worst of it had been when he informed the Hirano's of their son's death. He preferred not to think about it.

"I hope this trouble doesn't reach the National Academy Championship," Arthur said aloud.

But then pessimistic of him kicked in. "But it probably will."

* * *

**Dustin's Card(s)**

**Trade in for Tuning **

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **a man in a store handing a store clerk a Sonic Chick while point to a Junk Synchron on a shelf.

**Effect: **Discard one card from your hand. Then add one tuner type monster from your deck to your hand.

**Norio's Card(s)**

**Steel Clad Defense Golem**

**Type: **monster/earth/rock-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(0/2200)

**Effect: **When this card is selected as an attack target, change its battle position.

**Total Defense Cannon**

**Type: **monster/earth/machine-synchro

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(0/3000)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non-tuner monster(s)] During the Main Phase, you may chose to skip your battle phase. Inflect 1000 points of damage to your opponent if this is done.

**Speed Spell-Normal Booster**

**Type: **speed spell

**Image: **An Ojama Yellow, an Axe Raider, and a Key Mace strapped to a rocket that is blasting into the sky.

**Effect:** You can only activate this card if you have 5 speed counters or higher. Special summon one normal monster from your hand.

**Defensive Attack Tactics**

**Type: **continuous trap

**Image: **a group of soldiers matching forward holding large shields with large spikes on them

**Effect: **Once per turn, switch the attack and defense points of one monster you control until the end of the turn.


	26. Consequences of Boredom

Another weekend had arrived at Duel Academy. Things were starting, if ever so slowly, to get back to normal. However, instead of single people to small groups congregating together, it was large groups consisting of 6-8 people. In groups or not, everyone was jumpy and kept looking over their shoulders as if expecting to be attacked at any moment. Then, in the late afternoon, everyone disappeared to their dorms and shut themselves in. In essence, Duel Academy would become a ghost town. But one person found this to their advantage, however.

Adam found himself taking a solitary stroll around the island early Saturday night, munching on the remains of a fish he caught and cooked. Adam found that he enjoyed the freedom that everyone's paranoia gave him. He had free roam of the island, which Adam took full advantage of. In the past hour, he had managed to gather a large pile of local herbs and berries. Now his search had gone to looking for items to make tools essential for survival. Over the past few days he had gone a hold of a short, thin metal pole and some string, which he used to make a fishing rod. Now he was looking for something to start fires with, namely flint, or maybe even a lighter or matches.

Adam's thoughts were interrupted as he heard sounds on the tail ahead of him. He quickly jumped off the trail and hid himself in a group of bushes that was partly behind a large tree, which gave Adam a descent view of the trail. It didn't take long for the person to walk into view. It was an Obelisk Blue girl, the same girl he had seen with the Ra Yellow boy in fact. Adam hoped she would move on so he could continue his search, but to his annoyance, she stopped in the middle of the trail. For one moment, Adam thought he'd been discovered and began to back away, preparing to run. His fears were but to rest, however, when the Obelisk Blue girl tilted her head back looking up into the sky, making it obvious that she was unaware of his presence.

"Oh Chris," the girl muttered, her eyes starting to water, "I'm so sorry."

This puzzled Adam as he watched the girl disappear into the growing darkness. In the past few days, Adam had taken every chance he got to come to grips with Duel Academy's past events. So he had most of the story of Rubye's brief kidnapping, and Chris's duel with Osore. But the information Adam had gained didn't explain Rubye's behavior to him. Adam searched his brain for something to explain it. The only thing he could come up with was something called 'guilt.' If anything, this confused Adam even further. What did she have to fell guilty about? This wasn't her fault, nor had she been the one to inflected the injuries on Chris.

But no matter how much logic thinking he put into it, he could not come up with a satisfactory answer. This fact disturbed him. For the second time in less than a week, he had been confronted with a problem, thought a problem he had no part of, to which he could not find an answer. Since he was alone in this world with no one to support him, such things could be fatal. Forgetting his search, Adam returned to his cave to contemplate.

* * *

The sun rose high over Duel Academy early Sunday afternoon. The student's were trying, with mixed success, to enjoy their weekly break from schoolwork. But alas, a good half of the student body was choosing to stay indoors. Then most who did go out made sure that they were out for as short a time as they possibly could. But a growing group of students were starting to edge back in to their normal routine.

The lack of people out and about had made the island's forest quite calm and peaceful. That is until…

"I'm bored!"

"Will you shut up Faron!"

"I can't help it!" Faron wined as he and Edon stood outside of the abandon dorm. "There's nothing to do! Nobody to duel!"

"And why do you think that is!" Edon shouted back.

"Um …" Faron said, with a confused look on his face.

"Are you that stupid!" Edon shouted, his temper rising. "The whole thing with those four experiments of Masaru! You know, Nekkyou, Osore, Urei, and Ikari?"

"Yes," Faron replied. "But why should they still be on edge about that? All four of them have been taken out, and it's not like Adam's going to do anything to draw attention to himself!"

"That's true," Edon said, his temper still rising, which was made worse by his admission that Faron was right. "But the thing is, we are the only ones who know about that! And unless you're will to tell them and incriminate yourself, that aren't likely to figure that out for a while!"

"You know, I might just do that!" Faron shouted. "It'd be better than doing nothing!"

"Faron," Edon growled. "If you even tried, you'd be dead in seconds. Either by my hands, or by those of Lady Adelie."

"Like you could get your hands on me!" Faron sneered back.

"You couldn't run forever," Edon said, cracking his knuckles. "And let me show you what I could do to you." Edon walked over to a nearby tree. His raised his fist, and hit the tree. There was a second of silence before there was a loud _**CRACK **_and the tree split in two, the two pieces falling to the ground with a crash.

"That doesn't matter," Faron shouted. "All I'd have to do his go to the other side of the world. And this world is big! So good lucky finding me!"

Suddenly, the doors of the abandon dorm burst open. "What's all of this racket," shouted a highly annoyed Masaru. "I'm trying to work in here you know!"

Edon shrugged. "Sorry, I was just showing Faron what'll had to him if he starts getting ideas." Edon pointed to the two pieces of the fallen tree.

Masaru laughed. "As if Faron could get ideas." Masaru examined the fallen tree. "So how did you do this?"

"I punched it," Edon said.

"I see," Masaru said, stroking his chin. "But where do you get this sort of power?"

"The same way you go your mind boost and Faron got his teleport trick," Edon replied.

"You mean Lady Adelie gave them to you?" Masaru asked. Edon nodded.

"This doesn't help me!" Faron interrupted. He fell to his knees and began to slam his head into the dirt. "Bored! Bored! Bored!" He shouted each time his head hit the group.

"Faron," Masaru shouted over Faron's yelling. "They're sparring in the auditorium, so you can go there to find something to do."

Faron looked up, a large, dirty covered bruise was forming on his forehead. "Oh really? Well then…" and Faron disappeared with a small _POP_.

Edon sighed, and rubbed his head. "Masaru, stupidity isn't contagious right?"

"Thankfully, it's not."

* * *

The auditorium was alive with the sounds of dueling. As Masaru had said, sparring was going on between some of the representatives, namely Alexandra, Caden, Dustin, and Trevor. Nether Chris, Rubye, nor Myrine were there. Peter was there, but he just stood in the back, watching. Several other students were watching the duels. A small group of Ra Yellow was even keeping a running tally on the results of the duels. So far out of 49 duels, Trevor had won 20 times, Alexandra 16, Caden 6, and Dustin 5.

As of the moment, Alexandra and Trevor were finishing a duel, with Alexandra as the winner. "Whoa, I need a break," Trevor said as he stepped off the dueling field. "Who wants to take my place?"

A few seconds before, Faron had appeared at the top of the stadium, unnoticed by anyone. He heard the question. "Do you mind if I do?" He called down to them.

Trevor gave him a friendly smile. "Sure, go ahead."

Faron began to walk down to the dueling field, but tripped. This resulted in him falling head over heels the rest of the way down, landing in a heap on the floor. "Again!" Faron shouted as the rest of the student's laughed. Faron got up and straightened himself. "I'm okay!" He shouted as he stepped onto the dueling field.

"Um, okay." Alexandra said, as she reshuffled her deck and drew her hand.

"Ladies first," Faron said as he drew his hand.

Alexandra nodded as she drew her sixth card. "I summon Rescue Warrior in attack mode (1600/1700). I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Faron drew a card. "I set one monster is defense mode, then end my turn."

Alexandra drew a card. "I summon Field-Commander Rahz in attack mode (1600/1200). Now his effect activates! When he is summoned, I'm allowed to take a level 4 warrior monster from my deck and place it on top of my deck." Alexandra took a card from her deck and placed it on top. "Now Rescue Warrior, attack his facedown!" Rescue Warrior ran forward and punched the facedown. It revealed to be some sort of chest armor, which immediately placed itself on Faron.

"This is my Active Guard (0/2500)," Faron said, patting the armor monster. "And lets not forget his effect which increases his defense points by 500 (0/2500-3000). Which means more hurt for you!"

"Actually, I take no damage," Alexandra said, gesturing to her life point counter, which had not moved a bit. "When my Rescue Warrior attacks, I take no battle damage."

"Damn it," Faron muttered.

Alexandra sighed. "I end my turn."

Faron drew a card. "I summon Psychic Armor Head in attack mode (0/500-1000)." A blue and gray helmet appeared on Faron's head. "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Alexandra drew a card. "I summon the tuner Rose, Warrior of Revenge in attack mode. Now I tune my level 4 Rose, Warrior of Revenge with my level 4 Field-Commander Rahz!" Rose, Warrior of Revenge shattered and formed into three green rings. The rings flew into the air, along with Field-Commander Rahz. Field-Commander Rahz flew into the middle of the three rings. There, he started to glow, became transparent, and to morph into a new monster.

"Synchro summon! Colossal Fighter (2800/1000)." The auditorium trembled as the humongous, tan warrior appeared behind Alexandra.

"Before we go any further, Colossal Fighter gains 100 attack points for every warrior monster in my graveyard (2800-3000/1000). Now I equip my Colossal Fighter with the equip spell Breaker Sword." A giant, almost as big as Colossal Fighter itself, sword appeared in Colossal Fighter's hands. "Now my Colossal Fighter, destroy Active Guard!" Colossal Fighter charge forward, and brought its Breaker Sword down on Active Guard. The Breaker Sword hit Active Guard, shattering it. The force of the blow knocked Faron back and foot or so, and knocked him to the ground.

"What the heck just happened?" Faron shouted as he picked himself off the ground. "Our monster's points were equal! Why was Active Guard destroyed?"

"It was the effect of Breaker Sword," Alexandra explained. "When a monster equipped with it attacks, the target monster is destroyed at the end of the damage step. Now my Rescue Warrior will destroy Psychic Armor Head!" Rescue Warrior charged forward.

"I activate Negate Attack!" Faron shouted. Rescue Warrior charged straight into the large vortex that appeared in front of Faron. It was then flung out back to Alexandra's side of the field. "I would've activated that earlier if I known Breaker Sword's effect."

"You know, all you had to do was ask," Alexandra said. "I end my turn."

Faron drew a card. "I activate the spell Armor Gravitation! When I have my Psychic Armor Head out, this spell allows me to special summon 4 level 4 or lower 'armor' monster's from my deck. So I special summon a second Active Guard (0/2500-3000), Big Bang Blow (0/0-500), Advanced Shield (1000/0-500), and Over Boost (0/1000-1500)." As each armor monster appeared, it placed itself on Faron's body. So when everything was said and done, Faron stood there in a full suit of mechanical armor. Faron examined the cards in his hand, and the cards on the field. 'Oh well,' Faron thought to himself. 'At least I can end it in a tie.'

"Now I attack Colossal Fighter with Big Bang Blow!" Faron shouted as he himself Jumped forward. He brought his fist back, and slammed it into Colossal Fighter. At the moment of impact, Colossal Fighter exploded, covering Alexandra's side of the field in holographic smoke. Faron walked back to his side of the field, and the armor he was wearing shattered (FLP: 4000-0). "When Big Bang Blow is destroyed as a result of battle, all other monsters on the field are destroyed and we get hit with damage equal to all of the destroyed monster's attack points combine. So it's a draw."

"Actually, it not." The smoke settled to reveal Alexandra (ALP: 1600).

"W-What?" Faron stuttered. "B-But how!"

"Before your attack hit," Alexandra explained. "I activated my trap, Warrior's Sacrifice to Life. This trap allowed me to sacrifice one of my warriors, namely Rescue Warrior, to increase my life points by its attack points. Then since it wasn't on the field when Big Bang Blow's effect activated, I didn't lose that 1600 life points. So I win."

Faron laughed. "Ah well." He stepped off the field as Dustin walked forward to take his place. He sat down in the front row and watched the duel between Dustin and Alexandra duel. "Dueling and loses is better than doing nothing, I suppose."

* * *

"I'm done!" Chris shouted triumphantly as he held up his deck. Considering it had taken him two days, he was very glad to be done with it. The last dim rays of sunlight shun across his bed through the window as he packed up his extra cards and slid his deck into his duel disk. He placed his duel disk on the bedside table and leaned back into his reclined bed. He closed his eyes and immediately fell asleep. There was several minutes of silence before there was a knock at the door.

"Chris?" Rubye asked as she walked into the room. She fell silent as she saw Chris sleeping contentedly. She walked over to his bed and declined it until if was flat again. She pulled the covers up to his shoulders, leaving Chris's neck and head exposed. She caressed his forehead and kissed him on the cheek. "Good night Chris," Rubye said softly as she left the room, shutting off the lights as she left.

* * *

**Alexandra's Card(s)**

**Breaker Sword**

**Type: **equip spell

**Image: **a very large sword with a shinning steel blade, and a gold and sliver held with encrusted with sseveral small rubies.

**Effect: **This card can only be equipped to a level 5 or higher warrior-type monster. When a monster equipped with this card attacks an opponent's monster, that monster is destroyed at the end of the damage step.

**Warrior's Sacrifice to Life**

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **A warrior kneeling beside a fallen comrade as a bright light surrounds the two.

**Effect: **Sacrifice one warrior-type monster on the field you control. Increase your life by an amount equal to the sacrificed monster's attack points.


	27. One More Day

'One day, just one more day,' a wheelchair bound Chris said to himself. He was sitting in his dorm room packing his suitcase, with Anthia's help. Actually, Anthia was doing all of the packing, refusing to allow Chris to do anything. In fact, Anthia was doing everything for Chris was a passion that frightened him. She finished the packing, and slammed the suitcase shut with a loud CLAP! She stood there in silence, staring down at the suitcase.

"Anthia, are you alright?" Chris asked.

Anthia turned to Chris, a sad look on her face. "No, Chris, I'm not." Before Chris could anything, Anthia started crying. "Oh Chris, I'm so worried! First, you were just hurt, and now you can't even walk! And it's all my fault! I'm a teacher and your big sister! I'm suppose to keep that stuff from happening!"

During all of this, Chris had rolled to Anthia's side. He patted Anthia on the shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "There, there now. Its not your fault," he said. She wasn't listening however.

"And now, your going to compete in the National Academy Championship," Anthia continued. "Your going to be dueling some of the best the various Duel Academies have to offer. We've made arrangements so that you'll duel last, but your injuries won't be fully healed by then! I'm just so scared that something else will happen!" Anthia began to cry in earnest now.

Finally, Chris had had enough. He leaned forward, and embraced Anthia in a large hug. "Don't talk like that," Chris said, almost in tears himself. "Its not your fault. You didn't do this to me. It was those maniacs Nekkyou and Osore. There's nothing you could have done! And another thing, my injuries resulted from choices I made, not you. I knew what I was getting into and did it anyway." Anthia looked at him, wiping the tears from her face. "I say again. IT. WASN'T. YOUR. FAULT!" Chris said loudly for emphasis. Anthia was silent for a moment, then sniffed and wiped her eyes again.

"Thanks little bro," she said. "I needed that.

* * *

"Alright students, this will be our last meeting before you leave tomorrow," Chancellor Arthur said to assembled representatives, minus Chris, and Professor Aaron. "If you haven't done your packing yet, you should finish it tonight because you won't have time to in the morning."

"Why?" Dustin asked.

"Because," Arthur said, "you'll be leaving at 5:00 in the morning."

"Oh boy," Caden said, leaning back in his chair. "Good luck getting the whole school up by then."

"Well actually, you be the only one's going tomorrow," Arthur replied.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Faron asked.

"Well, the representatives of each school will leave for the tournament in New Domino City a week before the entire school bodies arrive," Arthur answered.

"So why are we going so early?" Trevor asked.

"It's so you can rehearse some things, and get used to the stadium layout," Arthur said.

'What will we be rehearsing?" Alexandra asked.

"Mostly the opening ceremony," Arthur said. When no one else spoke, Arthur continued, "Well, if that's it, then you can go pack."

"Before we go," Aaron said as those assembled rose from their chairs, "I think we should have one more sparring duel."

"I don't suppose it would hurt," Arthur said. Arthur looked over the assembled students. Myrine had gone, but the rest were still there. "Does that sound appealing?" he asked. When no one said anything negative, he turned back to Aaron. "Do you have any suggestions?"

"Yes," Aaron said, and he points to Edon and Peter. "Those two."

The responses varied. Peter just shrugged. Edon, on the other hand, "Do I have too?"

"Do you have a reason not too?" Aaron asked.

"No," Edon grudgingly admitted.

"Then yes." Five minutes later, Edon and Peter were on the dueling field. The rest of the students, representatives and passersby, Chancellor Arthur, and Professor Aaron were setting in the stadium that surrounded the dueling field.

"Alright, so who's going first?" Edon asked as he drew his hand.

"You can," Peter said simply.

"Okay," Edon said abrasively as he drew his sixth card. "I activate the field spell Trench Works!" The field that Edon and Peter stood on began to change. It changed from metal platform to bare dirt ground. Single deep trenches appeared in front of both Edon and Peter. In between the two were several craters and a small barbwire fence. "Now I summon Soldier Guard in attack mode (1400/1400)." A young man in simple blue army fatigues, black beret, with an assault rifle that looked similar to an M16 slung over his shoulder appeared on the field. The second he appeared, he jumped into the trench and hunkered down. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Peter drew a card. "I summon Deep Diver in attack mode (1000/1100). Now I equip Deep Diver with the spell card Lucky Iron Axe!" In Deep Diver's hands, a large iron axe appeared, replacing its sledgehammer (1000-1500/1100). "Now Deep Diver, attack Soldier Guard!" Deep Diver charged forward, past the craters and through the barbwire fence. He stopped at the edge of Edon's trench, raised the Lucky Iron Axe high, and brought it down on Soldier Guard. Soldier Guard threw its assault rifle up, blocking Deep Diver's attack (ELP: 4000-3900). Deep Diver trudged back to Peter's side of the field. "What happened?" Peter asked coolly.

"That was the effect of my Trench Works," Edon said. "Once per turn, either one of us can negate the destruction of a monster."

Peter shrugged. "I set on card and end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "I summon Flamer Soldier in attack mode (1700/1300). Flamer Soldier, attack Deep Diver!" Flamer Soldier charged across the field and leveled its flamethrower at Deep Diver. Deep Diver flinched as it felt the heat, but was not burned (PLP: 4000-3800). "I'll end my turn at that."

Peter drew a card. "I activate the spell Banner of Courage, which gives my monsters 200 extra attack points during the battle phase. Now I summon Emissary of the Afterlife (1600/600). Now Emissary of the Afterlife will attack Flamer Soldier!" Emissary of the Afterlife flew forward, hovering several feet above the ground (1600-1800/600). It made a low swing at Flamer Soldier, which hit but bounced off (ELP: 4000-3900). "Deep Diver, attack Soldier Guard!" Deep Diver charged forward (1500-1700/1100), and cleaved Soldier Guard in two with Lucky Iron Axe (ELP: 3900-3600). "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Edon drew a card. "I activate my trap Soldier's Rallying Cry! This trap allows me to special summon my Soldier Guard from my graveyard!" Soldier guard reappeared in Edon's trench, banged up and bandaged. "Now I sacrifice my Soldier Guard and Flamer Soldier to summon Grand Tactician Officer in attack mode (2500/1900)." A tall, middle-aged man appeared in Edon's trench. He was wearing a light grey uniform, with a small black cap. Hanging from the man's belt were a large saber and a holstered pistol. "Now I activate his effect. If I discard a card from my hand, I can destroy either all face up spell or traps on your side of the field!" Edon discarded a card from his hand. Grand Tactician Officer wiped out its pistol, took careful aim, and fired two shots, destroying Banner of Courage and Lucky Iron Axe (1500-1000/1100).

"Lucky Iron Axe's effect activates," Peter said. "When it's destroyed by an opponent's card effect, I get to draw one card." Peter drew a card.

Edon shrugged. "Whatever. Now Grand Tactician Officer, attack Deep Diver!" Grand Tactician Officer charge forward, drew his saber, and sliced Deep Diver in half (PLP: 3800-2300). "Now for Grand Tactician Officer's other effect! When Grand Tactician Officer destroys a monster, he can attack again! So go, destroy Emissary of the Afterlife!" This time, Grand Tactician Officer wiped out his pistol and shot Emissary of the Afterlife several times, destroying it (PLP: 2300-1400).

"I activate Deep Diver's and Emissary of the Afterlife's effects," Peter said calmly. "When Deep Diver is destroyed in battle, I can take a monster card from my deck and place it on my the top of my deck. Then, when Emissary of the Afterlife is destroyed we both take a level 3 or lower normal monster from our decks and add them to our hands after showing them to each other." Peter to one card from his deck and placed it on top while Edon searched his deck for a card.

"I don't have any," Edon growled in annoyance.

"I chose Right Leg of Exodia," Peter said; add the card to his hand.

Edon mentally kicked himself. 'Damn it, I forgot he ran an Exodia deck.' "I end my turn."

Peter drew a card. "I activate the spell card Poisons of the Old Man. This spell card gives me a choice, either to give myself 1200 life points or inflect 800 points of damage to you. I choose to give myself 1200 life points (PLP: 1400-2600). Now I summon Witch of the Black Forest in attack mode (1100/1200). Witch of the Black Forest, attack Grand Tactician Officer!" Witch of the Black Forest charge forward, but was sliced in half by Grand Tactician Officer (PLP: 2600-1200). "Needless to say, I don't think I need to explain Witch of the Black Forest's effect." Peter took a card from his deck.

"Oh crap," Edon muttered.

Peter calmly took five cards from his hand and held them up high where everyone could see them. He held Exodia the Forbidden One, Right Arm of Exodia, Left Arm of Exodia, Right Leg of Exodia, and Left Leg of Exodia. "I win (ELP: 3600-0)."

The assembled student's applauded as Peter calmly left the field. Edon, on the other hand, sulked off.

* * *

Night had fallen. The moon, in last quarter, hung high in the night sky. It covered the island in its pale, white light. The multitude of small, bright stars that covered the sky were adding their small lights to the scene as well. The pale lights gave a ghostly illumination the island. It was completely silent, save for the occasional cry of some animal in the island's immense jungle. In short, most people would an enjoyed the beauty of the scene around them. The one person who was part of the scene, however, ignored all of it.

Adelie stood bathed in the pale light of the moon and the stars. She looked around; checking to make sure no one was around to see what was about to happen. Satisfied that no other living thing around, she turned to face a patch of shadows, which stood in stark contrast with the pale light that surrounded it. She held out her hand towards the shadows. The shadows began to swirl and ripple as if it were the surface of a body of water that was recently disturbed. Still holding her hand out, Adelie walked forward into the darkness.

The darkness pressed in on Adelie. It was oppressive, dank, and cold, as if she was standing in a cave. She walked further into the darkness. It swirled around her legs as if it were a low hanging mist. The darkness advanced upon Adelie, dark tendrils reaching out to drag her into oblivion. But the darkness found it couldn't so much as touch her. The darkness tried again, but it stopped short of her, as if some force field was protecting her. After several attempts, the sentiment part of the darkness became frustrated to the point off giving up, becoming content will swirling around Adelie menacingly. Adelie ignored all of it. She continued walked through the darkness as if it were a light mist. As she walked, several portals to the real world appeared. She looked around at the portals. Each portal depicted a real time image of wherever the portal will lead. It didn't take long for her to find a portal with the image of Masaru hunched over his computer, and step through it.

"What is the status of the project?" Adelie asked, stepping out of the darkness.

"Stage 1 is complete," Masaru said, not looking up from his computer. "Th subject is preforming to standards, and adapting beautifully. Stage 2 is in the prep stage." Masaru gestured towards a large tank that was being filled with a clear, light green liquid. "I'll be able to start tomorrow."

Adelie frowned. "Don't start now, we're going to have to move the lab soon."

"What?" Masaru asked.

"The school body leaves for the National Academy Championship in a week from now," Adelie said. "So it would be unwise to start anything now."

"Right my lady," Masaru said. Masaru turned to the machine and pressed a few buttons. The Machine made several beeping noises, and it started to drain the green fluid. "Anything else my lady?"

Adelie turned from Masaru, shaking her head. "Just be ready to leave in a week." Adelie walked back into the black, coldness of the darkness.

* * *

**Edon's Cards(s)**

**Soldier Guard**

**Type: **monster/earth/warrior-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1400/1400)

**Effect: **While this card is face up on the field, negate all magic, trap, or monster effects that damage your life points.

**Grand Tactician Officer**

**Type: **monster/dark/warrior-effect

**Level: **8

**Stats: **(2500/1900)

**Effect: **Discard one card from your hand. Destroy all face up spell or traps on your opponent's side of the field. This effect can only be used once per turn. When this card destroys a monster, it can attack twice. This second attack can not be a direct attack.

**Trenchworks**

**Type: **field spell

**Image: **a barren waste land with rows of barbwire in the background and a large trench in the foreground.

**Effect: **Once per turn, each player can negate the destruction of a monster. Battle damage applies as normal.**  
**


	28. Other Side

It was 4:55 a.m. This early in the morning the island was pitch black. The only source of light was the island's lighthouse, and the several dock lights that had been turned on. This solitary beacon in the pre-morning darkness illuminated the docks, revealing the thirteen figures standing there. They were the ten representatives, Chancellor Arthur, and Professors Aaron and Anthia. Dustin, Caden, and Faron were pacing the dock, trying to stay awake. Edon was leaning against a light pole, staring down at the dock. Peter and Myrine were stand away from the group, as usual. Trevor and Alexandra were standing at the end of the dock, watching the night sky in each other's embrace. Chris, due to a recent douse of painkillers and his overall state of weakness from his long stay in the hospital wing, was asleep in his wheelchair. Anthia and Rubye were busy tucking a blanket around Chris to keep him warm in the early morning chill. Arthur and Aaron were standing on the other side of the dock, looking out at the dark ocean.

"So far, so good," Arthur muttered to Aaron, so not to be overheard by the others.

"Lets not get carried away," Aaron whispered back. "Some psychopathic maniac could appear at the last minute and blow up the yacht." This last statement was half in jest. Arthur was not amused however.

"That's not funny," Arthur growled. "Do you realize how much trouble this has caused? The lives of those four students will never be the same, and I had to do a lot of fast-talking to pass it off as a freak accident!"

"I know, I know! Keep your voice down!" Aaron whispered hurriedly as he threw a glance at the others gathered on the dock. No one appeared to have heard them. "Lets take the absence of any activity as a sign that thinks have quieted down."

"That's not the problem," Arthur said. "The thing is, there are always to groups when this sort of thing is concerned; those two groups being the victims and the perpetrator. The four students in this case were the victims. What worries me is that the perpetrator is still out there, and if they did it once they can do it again. And furthermore…."

"Look, there it is!" Aaron interrupted, pointing a set of lights speeding towards them. The yacht, which was being provided the NAC sponsors, pull quietly into the dock before coming to a stop. Dockhands, who had been professional inconspicuous, appeared as crewmen on the yacht threw mooring lines out, which the dockhands immediately tied down, securing the yacht to the dock. A gangplank came from the yacht and slammed down on the dock.

Chancellor Arthur clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright everyone, lets get moving. We have a schedule to keep." The ten representatives gathered up their luggage sleepily and began to board the yacht. Four of the yacht's crewmen, two on the dock and two on the yacht, helped the ten as the climbed up the gangplank. The rest of the crew, minus the captain, began running the luggage to their respective owner's cabins, sometimes without waiting to be asked. The whole procedure took about ten minutes until the only one's who were going who hadn't board the yacht were Rubye, Anthia, Chris, and Chancellor Arthur. The only one of the group who was staying behind was Aaron. Dustin and Caden and boarded the yacht, left their luggage to be taken to their cabins, and disembarked along with one of the crewman to help Chris and his wheelchair onto the yacht.

Dustin and the crewman lifted the still sleeping Chris gingerly from his wheelchair, while Caden moved it out of the way and folded it up. The crewman and Caden carried Chris gently up the gangplank.

"Geese, this kid's out like a light!" The crewman commented.

"He's on painkillers," Caden replied, carrying the wheelchair over his shoulders. "Those things could knock out an elephant!"

"Yeah, I know what you mean," the crewman commented without elaboration. While they had to take it gently, it didn't take them long to get Chris and his wheelchair to his cabin. The carefully lowered Chris onto his bed while Anthia and Rubye walked into the cabin. They thanked the crewman for his help and he left to perform his shipboard duties. Dustin and Caden also left to get settled into their cabins. Anthia and Rubye were left to tuck Chris into his bed and prop his head on a pillow, all done in silence. When they were done, they stood over Chris in silence for a moment.

"I'm going to go get settled in," Anthia said quietly. She walked off, leaving Rubye and Chris alone. Rubye made some few alterations to the blanket covering Chris. She smiled down at him as she brushed the hair on his forehead back, bent down, and kissed him on the forehead. Although she hated to admit it, she envied these times that Chris had were he could just sleep and be a peace, at least for a little while. She finished adjusting the blankets and walked over to the door, flipping the lights of as she went. As she stood in the doorway, she took one last look at the sleeping Chris. It looked at ease as he chest moved up and down slowly as he breathed. Yes, after all he had been through, he deserved a moment of peacefulness. With that thought in mind, Rubye closed the door and walked to her cabin.

Unfortunately, outward appearances are often deceiving. While Chris looked calm and peaceful on the outside, on the inside, he was in turmoil.

* * *

Chris groaned as feeling seeped into his numb body. He had been dreaming, about something stupid, but whatever was going here had interrupted it. He slowly opened his eyes, expecting to see the roof of a room. Instead, what he saw was a swirling mass of black fog. Chris trying moving his arms, of which both responded according. Chris, finding that all feeling had returned to his body, pulled himself into a sitting position. He looked around, observing his surroundings. He was sitting on the top of a large, circular, stone tower. The stone the tower was made of was a pale gray, which stood in contrast to the dark fog surrounding it. Chris stood up.

"How on earth did I get here," Chris murmured, convinced he was alone.

"I brought you here." Chris jumped and whirled to face the speaker. Standing on the other side of the tower was a figure wrapped in a black cloak that hid most of the figure's features. What could be made of the person was that he was about the same height and physical build as Chris.

"Who are you?" Chris asked.

"You should already know that," the person replied.

Chris was utterly confused by this statement. But his confusion was quickly shoved from the forefront of his mind when he realized that the person sounded almost like him! "What's that supposed to mean?"

The person shrugged. "If you can't figure it out, I'm not going to explain it. But that's not the point. You see, I brought you here for a reason." An arm came out from under the cloak, revealing a black standard duel disk clipped to it.

"But I don't have a duel disk!" Chris shouted.

"That's not a problem," the person replied. "Just think about having one."

"What do mean?" Chris asked. But the second he asked it, a duel disk appeared on his arm in a bright flash of light. "What the heck?"

"We're in your mind," the person said. "All you need to do is think it and it becomes this world's reality."

"Does that mean you'll go away if I think it?" Chris asked.

"No," the person replied. The person activated his duel disk and drew a hand. "I get things started by summoning Apprentice to Dark Magic in attack mode (900/1200)." A young woman in a set of long, black robes appeared on the field. She had short, black hair and a pale complexion, as if she hadn't been in direct sunlight in a very long time. In her hands she clutched a long, oak wood staff that ended in a small, black stone at its tip. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris, having activated his duel disk and drew his hand, drew a card. "I summon Crusader of Endymion in attack mode (1900/1200). Now, Crusader of Endymion will attack Apprentice of Dark Magic!" Crusader of Endymion ran forward, raising its fists to attack.

"I activate Defensive Magic Technique!" The person shouted. "When one of my spellcasters is targeted as an attack, this trap prevents it from being destroyed." A bright, light blue sphere appeared around Apprentice of Dark Magic, taking the force of Crusader of Endymion's attack (?LP: 4000-3000).

"I'll end my turn by placing two cards facedown," Chris said.

The person drew a card. "I summon Caster of Shadows in attack mode (1600/1400)." A person clad in a ragged black cloak appeared on the field. None of its physical features were visible, but a pair of glowing red eyes were visible under the hood. Cradled in its arms was an old, almost completely rotted staff. "Now I activate Apprentice to Dark Magic's effect! When I control a dark attribute spellcaster, I can activate a spell card from my deck." The person take a card from his deck. "I activate the spell card Curse of Black Magic! This spell card will raise the attack points of all of my monsters by 500!" A black mist appeared on the field, swirling around the person's two monsters (900-1400/1200) (1600-2100/1400). "Now, Caster of Shadows will attack Crusader of Endymion!" Caster of Shadows lifted his rotten staff, and a mass of shadows emerged from it. The shadows flew towards Crusader of Endymion, surrounding it. It struggled against the shadows, but to no avail, being swallowed completely by the shadows and disappeared from sight (CLP: 4000-3800).

"I activate the trap Call of the Haunted!" Chris shouted. "This allows me to special summon my Crusader of Endymion from my graveyard!" A large portal appeared in the ground and Crusader of Endymion jumped out of it.

The person sighed. "I switch Apprentice to Dark Magic to defense mode. I place one card facedown and end my turn (1400-900/1200) (2100-1600/1400)."

Chris drew a card. "I summon Magical Exemplar in attack mode (1700/1400). Next I play the field spell Magical Citadel of Endymion!" The ground shook as the giant, magical city appeared around them. "Now the effect of my Magical Exemplar activates! She gets two spell counters for each spell card I active!" Two small, white glowing orbs appeared around Magical Exemplar. "Now I activate the spell card Double Summon (ME SC: 2-4). With this spell, I can second summon my Crusader of Endymion!" A bright light appeared around Crusader of Endymion, and he roared a battle cry. "Then the effect of my Magical Citadel of Endymion activates! For every spell card activated, my Magical Citadel of Endymion gets a spell counter (MCE SC; 1)

"Second summon?" The person asked.

"Crusader of Endymion is a gemini monster," Chris explain "Now that he has been seconded summoned, I can activate his effect. Once per turn, I can place one spell counter on a card that can take them, so my Magical Exemplar gets another spell counter (ME SC: 4-5). Then my Crusader of Endymion gains a 600 attack point bonus (1900-2500/1200). Now my Crusader of Endymion will attack Caster of Shadows!" Crusader of Endymion charged forward and punched Caster of Shadows, hard. Caster of Shadows shattered with the impact (?LP: 3000-2100). "Now my Magical Exemplar will attack Apprentice to Dark Magic!" Magical Exemplar held out her hands, and several bright green spheres shot out of her hands. They flew towards Apprentice to Dark Magic and slammed into her, destroying her. "I set one card and end my turn."

"I activate the trap Dead Revival of Dark Magic!" The person shouted. "At the end of the turn when spellcasters I own are destroyed, this trap gives me to two Dead Revival Tokens (500/500)!" Two creatures made of rotten flesh appeared on the field. One was wearing Apprentice of Dark Magic's robe, while the other wore Caster of Shadow's cloak.

"I end my turn (2500-1900/1200)," Chris said.

The person drew a card. "I summon Nights End Sorcerer in attack mode (1300/400). Now I tune my level 2 Nights End Sorcerer with my level 2 Dead Revival Token with my level 2 Dead Revival Token!" Nights End Sorcerer shattered, and became three bright green rings. The three green rings and the two Dead Revival Tokens flew into the air, with the two Dead Revival Tokens positioning themselves with the three rings. The two Dead Revival Token's began to glow and merged with each, reforming into a new shape.

"Synchro summon! Black Moon Sorcerer (2400/1900)!" There was a large explosion of darkness as the monster appeared on the field. It had the physical build of a middle-aged man. He wore black, loose fitting robes with a long black cloak. The hood was down, revealing the man's aged face, his soulless black eyes, and long, dirty brown hair. In his hands, he held a staff made of a dark brown colored wood. At its tip, it is ending in a black metal carving of the moon.

"Now I activate Black Moon Sorcerer's effect," the person continued. "When it is summoned, you lose 400 life points for every spellcaster monster in my graveyard, I count three." Black Moon Sorcerer pointed its staff at Chris, and fired three balls of fiery black magic. The three hit him square in the chest (CLP: 3800-2600). "Now my Black Moon Sorcerer will destroy Crusader of Endymion!" This time, Black Moon Sorcerer ran forward and slammed the tip of its staff into Crusader of Endymion's chest, cause him to shatter (CLP: 2600-2100). "I set one card facedown and end my turn."

Chris drew a card. "I activate the trap Pitch-Black Power Stone! This trap, when activated, gets three spell counters place on it (PBPS SC: 3). Then, once per turn, I can take on of those spell counts and place it on another card. In this case, I place one of those spell counters on Magical Citadel of Endymion (PBPS SC: 3-2) (MCE SC: 1-2) "Now I activate Spellbooks in the Pot! This magic card allows use both to draw three cards (MCE SC: 2-3) (ME SC: 5-7)." Both Chris and the person drew three cards.

"Thanks for the help," the person taunted.

"Oh shut up," Chris shot back. "Next I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior in attack mode (1600/1000). When Breaker the Magical Warrior is summoned, he gains a spell counter, which gives him 300 extra attack points (1600-1900/1000). Now I activate the spell Mystical Space Typhoon, and I chose to destroy my Pitch-Black Power Stone!" A small typhoon erupted from the card and blew Pitch-Black Power Stone away."

"And what was the point of that?" The person asked.

"For starters, since Pitch-Black Power Stone still had spell counters on it, those spell counters get added on to Magical Citadel of Endymion (MCE SC: 3-5). Then my Magical Exemplar gains two spell counters (ME SC: 7-9). Now I activate Magical Exemplar's effect! When I remove spell counters from her, I can special summon a spellcaster monster from my hand or graveyard whose level is equal to the number of spell counters I removed. So I remove seven spell counters from Magical Exemplar to special summon Dark Magician!" There was a flash a dark purple light as the famous spellcaster appeared on the field (ME SC: 9-2). "Now Dark Magician, attack Black Moon Sorcerer!" Dark Magician jumped into the air, floating several feet above the ground. It pointed its staff at Black Moon Sorcerer and performed its famous Dark Magic Attack, shattering Black Moon Sorcerer (?LP: 2100-2000). "Now Breaker the Magical Warrior and Magical Exemplar will attack your life points directly!"

"I activate the effect of a card in my hand, Attack Gremlin (0/0)!" The person shouted. "When I discard this monster from my hand, any battle damage I take from direct attacks become 0." A dark aura appeared around the person, taking the full force of Breaker the Magical Warrior and Magical Exemplar's attacks.

"I end my turn," Chris said.

The person drew a card. "I activate the spell card Premature Burial! If I pay 800 life points, I can special summon my Black Moon Sorcerer from the graveyard (MCE SC: 5-6)." The ground in front of the person exploded and Black Moon Sorcerer appeared out of the debris (?LP: 2000-1200). "Now I activate the trap Dark Magic Explosion! This trap, which can only activate if I control a dark-spellcaster synchro monster, destroys every card one the field!" Black Moon Sorcerer exploded, sending waves of dark energy radiating across the field, shattering Black Moon Sorcerer, Dark Magician, Breaker the Magical Warrior, and Magical Exemplar, but not Magical Citadel of Endymion.

"I removed a spell counter from Magical Citadel of Endymion to keep it from being destroyed," Chris said. "Then, my Magical Citadel of Endymion gains the spell counter from Breaker, the Magical Warrior and Magical Exemplar (MCE SC: 7)."

The person nodded in understanding. "Alright then. Now I remove Black Moon Sorcerer from play to special summon my Black Shadow Sorceress in attack mode (2000/2100)." A large, black shadow appeared from the person's duel disk and formed into a human-like figure. It was wrapped it a loose cloak, making it impossible to distinguish the thing's physical makeup. However, its hood was down, revealing its face. It had humanoid female face, which would have been beautiful if it hadn't been for her horribly pale skin. Its eyes were black, without irises. It had short pointed ears, and short cut black hair. It held a long, tarnished bronze staff that ended in a small, black metal sphere in its pale hands. "Now my Black Shadow Sorceress will attack you directly!" Black Shadow Sorceress pointed her staff at Chris, and fired a stream of black lightning at him. They hit Chris square in the chest, knocking him down (CLP: 2100-100). "I end my turn."

"That hurt," Chris moaned as he got up and drew a card. "I remove 6 spell counters from Magical Citadel of Endymion to special summon my Endymion, the Master Magician in attack mode (2700/1700) (MCE SC: 7-1)."

"Oh hell," the person said, realizing what was coming next.

"When Endymion, the Master Magician is summoned, I get to take a spell card from my graveyard." A card slipped out of Chris's graveyard and Chris added it to his hand. "I activate Endymion, the Master Magician's effect, which allows me to discard the spell card to destroy one of your cards!" Endymion, the Master Magician held up its staff, which began to glow with a dark purple aura. It then swept its staff around in an arch, launching a shock wave of energy at Black Shadow Sorceress. It hit her around the midriff, slicing her in half. "Now my Endymion, the Master Magician will attack your life points directly!" Endymion charged forward, raising its staff high as the purple aura appeared around it. Once it reached the person, it bashed its staff into the ground, causing a large explosion, with Endymion jumping away before being caught in the explosion (?LP: 1200-0). The dust settled, revealing that the person was laying on his back, seemly unconscious.

Chris sighed as he walked over to the person. "Damn it, why is all of this freaky stuff happening to me?"

Suddenly, the person sat up. "Oh quit you're whining."

Chris jumped. "Oh shut up. Now are you going to tell me who you are or I'm I going to have to find out the hard way."

The person laughed. "Although I really hate to admit it, you beat me. You have nothing to fear from me so I'll reveal myself." The person grabbed his hood, and pulled it off his head.

Chris's eyes widened as he stared at the face, or rather, his face. "What the hell!"

The face that looked back at him was his own! Almost identical in every detail. It had the same nose, same mouth, same structure, same medium cut black. There was only one difference. The eyes, instead of being a dull blue, were a light black.

"Surprised?" The lookalike asked.

"What are you?" Chris whispered.

"To put it simply, you." The lookalike replied.

"What? How could you be me." Chris asked.

"I said 'to put it simply'," the lookalike answered.

"Then explain it!" Chris shouted.

The lookalike smirked. "For starters, I may be you, but I'm also not you in every aspect except in physical appearance."

"Yeah, I already figured that out," Chris pointed out.

"Shut up and let me finish," the lookalike snapped. "What I am is another version of your soul. You see, everyone on earth has two different personalities, one dominant and one recessive. Usually this means that one personality will be aware of everything and be in control while the recessive one will only be aware of its own existence and nothing else. However, a more powerful recessive personality can become aware of the dominant personality and visa versa. Then sometimes the recessive personality can try to unseat the dominate personality and become the dominant personality."

Chris stepped back. "So were trying to take control away from me?"

The personality nodded. "I thought, giving the state that your in, I could do it. But unfortunately, it seems that I can never unseat you. As I said before, the recessive personality can _try _to unseat the dominant personality but it never works. Not only is an attempt a rare occurrence, but the ability of the recessive personality to become aware is an even rarer occurrence. The dominant will always be the dominant while the recessive will always be the recessive. It's only in very specific circumstances in which a recessive personality becomes dominant. Apparently, the dominant personality being injured is not one of them."

"Okay, so your little coup d'etat failed. So what happens now?" Chris asked.

The personality shrugged. "Well, it wasn't a complete failure. You're aware of me now."

"Which means...?"

"Since you're aware of me now, I can enter your consciousness and watch everything that happens," the personality explained.

Chris groaned. "Do you mean you're going to be a voice in the back of my head?"

The personality nodded. "I'll be able to observe everything that you do and comment on it. I'll be able to converse with you, and you'll be able to converse with me."

"Oh great," Chris moaned. Suddenly, the darkness around them began to dissipate and light began to shine down on them.

"Looks like our time here is up," said the personality. Before Chris could ask the whole scene whited out, and Chris lost consciousness.

* * *

Chris woke with a start and sat bolt up right in the bed. His chest was burning with pain and he winced and clutched at it. He looked around. He was in a small, completely dark room. For some strange reason, the room was swaying. It toke Chris a moment to realize where he was. He was on the yacht that was taking him and the others to New Domino city. Chris settled back into his bed. His mind went back to what had just happened.

"Was it all a dream?" Chris asked aloud.

"_**No, I'm afraid it wasn't my friend."**_

Chris bolted up right again, ignore the pain in his chest. "Who's there?"

"_**It's me remember? Your other personality?" **_

"You've got to be kidding me," Chris muttered as he settled into the bed again. "That whole thing was real?"

"_**Yes it was, and now we're stuck together." **_

"Brilliant," Chris muttered. "Not only do I have dark forces bent on doing whatever to worry about, I now have a voice in the back of my head to bug me."

"_**Hey, I don't like this anymore than you do. At least you can do whatever you want and aren't stuck just watching." **_

"True, but you can still make stupid little comments," Chris said.

"_**Yes but it's a small comfort."**_

"By the way, have you got a name?" Chris asked.

"_**Yes. My name is Scott."**_

"Scott?"

"_**What? You've got a problem with it?"**_

"No." Chris sighed. "I've enough of this. Can you be quite so I can go to sleep?"

"_**Sure."**_

"Thanks," Chris muttered. He closed his eyes and immediately fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

**Scott's Card(s)**

**Apprentice to Dark Magic**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(900/1200)

**Effect: **When you control another dark attribute spellcaster monster (besides this card) you may take one spell card from you deck and activate it immediately.

**Caster of Shadows**

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **4

**Stats: **(1600/1400)

**Effect: **This card can't be effected by the effects of trap cards.**  
**

**Attack Gremlin **

**Type: **monster/dark/fiend-effect

**Level: **2

**Stats: **(0/0)

**Effect: **When your opponent declares a direct attack, you may discard this card from your hand. If done, any damage taken this turn from direct attacks becomes 0.**  
**

**Black Moon Sorcerer **

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect/synchro

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2400/1900)

**Effect: **[1 tuner monster]+[1 or more non tuner monsters] When this card is successfully synchro summoned, inflict 400 points of damage to your opponent for each spellcaster type monster in your graveyard. **  
**

**Black Shadow Sorceress **

**Type: **monster/dark/spellcaster-effect

**Level: **6

**Stats: **(2000/2100)

**Effect: **This card can be special summoned from your hand by removing a level 5 or high spellcaster monster from play from your graveyard. When this card is summoned, destroy cards on your opponent's side of the field equal to that of the number of spellcasters (other than this card) on your field.

**Curse of Black Magic**

**Type: **normal spell

**Image: **A spellcaster with a black aura around him

**Effect: **Until the end of this turn, the attack points of all spellcasters you control is increased by 500.**  
**

**Defensive Magic Technique **

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **A spellcaster with a bright blue force field around him. A fireball is bouncing of the force field.

**Effect: **Activate only when a spellcaster monster you control is selected as an attack target. The selected spellcaster can not be destroyed by battle this turn. Battle damage is calculated as normal.**  
**

**Dead Revival of Dark Magic**

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **Three zombie magicians bursting out of the ground.

**Effect: **This card can only activate during the end phase of a turn in which spellcaster monsters you control were destroyed. Special summon two Dead Revival Tokens (Dark: zombie:lv 2: 500/500). These tokens can't be used in a tribute summon.**  
**

**Dark Magic Explosion**

**Type: **normal trap

**Image: **A magician screaming as the area around him explodes around him.

**Effect: **Activate only when you control a dark attribute spellcaster synchro monster. Destroy all cards on the field.**  
**


End file.
